Andean flamingo
The Andean flamingo (Phoenicoparrus andinus) is a large-bodied species of flamingo endemic to the high-altitude alkaline and salt lakes of the Andes Mountains in South America, spanning Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, and Peru at elevations from 2,300 to 4,500 meters.[1] It stands 1 to 1.4 meters tall with pale pink plumage, distinctive yellow legs unique among flamingos, and a downward-curving black bill featuring a yellow band, adapted for filter-feeding on microorganisms at the lake bottom.[1] Primarily feeding on diatoms and other small algae, it exhibits nomadic movements in search of patchy food resources and breeds colonially in remote wetlands, laying a single egg per clutch during the austral summer (December–February).[1] Classified as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List due to a rapid population decline of 30–49% over the past three generations, the Andean flamingo faces existential threats from habitat alteration driven by lithium mining, water-level fluctuations from climate change and diversion, egg collection by humans, and disturbance at breeding sites.[1] Recent censuses estimate its global population at approximately 78,000 individuals, with some evidence of stability or localized increases amid ongoing monitoring efforts, though systematic surveys since the 1990s highlight persistent vulnerability in breeding colonies like Laguna Colorada in Bolivia and Salar de Atacama in Chile.[2] As the rarest flamingo species, its specialized dependence on extreme, nutrient-rich hypersaline environments underscores the need for transboundary conservation to mitigate industrial pressures on these fragile Andean wetlands.[1][2]
Taxonomy and Evolution
Scientific Classification
The Andean flamingo (Phoenicoparrus andinus) is a species within the family Phoenicopteridae, the only family in the order Phoenicopteriformes, which comprises the world's six extant flamingo species.[3][4] This classification reflects phylogenetic analyses distinguishing flamingos from other waterbirds based on anatomical traits like their unique filtration feeding apparatus and molecular data supporting their monophyly.[5] Its taxonomic hierarchy is:- Kingdom: Animalia[6]
- Phylum: Chordata[3]
- Class: Aves[3]
- Order: Phoenicopteriformes[3]
- Family: Phoenicopteridae[3]
- Genus: Phoenicoparrus Bonaparte, 1856[7]
- Species: Phoenicoparrus andinus Philippi, 1854