Ultra-Rare Black Flamingo Spotted in Cyprus

9 years ago | Posted in: science | 817 Views

A rare black greater flamingo made news this month after it was spotted among a flock of white and pink brethren at the Akrotiri Environmental Center on the Mediterranean island nation.

The bird’s unusual plumage comes from a genetic condition called melanism, which causes excessive pigment to darken feathers. It’s occasionally seen in hawks and ducks, but has only been observed in a greater flamingo once before, in a bird filmed in Israel in 2013.

Flamingoes can migrate long distances, so it’s “definitely possible,” that the Cyprus sighting is actually the same bird, says Felicity Arengo, a conservationist at the American Museum of Natural History.

Conservationist Michaeline Moloney of the Flamingo Specialists Group—a global network of flamingo specialists—goes further, saying that the videos filmed in Cyprus and Israel show the exact same bird, which are distinguishable by how they look and interact with others… see more

source: national geographic news

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