1989
SO7204 : Andean Flamingo
taken 34 years ago, near to Moorend, Gloucestershire, England

Andean Flamingo
Resident of South America as the name suggests. One leg or two? This one is standing on one leg, a very common practice for flamingos, often for over an hour at a time. There are many theories about why they do this, including being able to dry the lifted foot or to have a shadow more like a tree as a disguise when hunting for food. Nobody quite knows, but the most likely reason is to conserve body heat by tucking a leg under some feathers. The flamingo has long legs with a lot of surface area and in its natural habitat high up in the Andes the temperatures can be very low.
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