Lesser Flamingo

Previously classified in the genus Phoenicopterus, genus of the Greater Flamingo, the Lesser Flamingo is since 2014 classified in its own genus Phoeniconaias. The species is monotypic. It is the smallest of flamingos, but it does not go unnoticed in the midst of Greater Flamingos to which it willingly mingles.
The adult Lesser Flamingo's plumage is generally pink, on average pinker than the Greater Flamingo itself. There is a significant variability in the intensity of the adults' pink plumage, in relation to the diet and breeding cycle. The most colourful part of the plumage is the top of the wing, of a vivid almost red pink, when it is not masked at rest by the scapulae and / or flank feathers. Black remiges point backwards. Without direct comparison to the Greater Flamingo, it is recognized by its dark and almost monochromatic beak from afar. Closer, one can see that it is dark carmine red with a black tip. In addition, the eye with light red iris is surrounded by a dark red circle connected to the beak. The long legs are red.
In flight, the contrast between the black remiges and the rest of the plumage is striking. The very colourful parts (medium overcovers and under axillars) appear in all their beauty.
The juvenile is very different in appearance due to the complete absence of carotenoid pigments. The contour plumage is light brown to beige. The remiges are dark brown. Even the rectrices have some brown at their tip. The wing covers, scapulae and axillaries are very brown. The beak is gray to blackish and the eye is dark. The legs are gray. At this age, the bird is therefore very brown, very dull. With time and wear, the plum age will lighten and become whitish at the end of the season, but still with brown on and under the wings.At this point, the 1st winter is still small compared to adults. Sexual maturity will not be reached until the age of 3 or 4. During all this time of immaturity, remarkably, the bird will continue to grow, the nuptial plumage appearing only in the year of the first reproduction, that is 3 or 4 years after birth.