The Tribune

THE Bahamas Postal Service collaborated with World Wide Fund for Nature to produce a Caribbean stamp depicting the national bird of the Bahamas. The flamingo is a protected species in the Bahamas, and is watched over by the Society for the Protection of the Flamingo through the Bahamas National Trust, a statutory body set up in l959. The large breeding colony of flamingos in Great Inagua is one of three major nesting groups found in the region. The other two are in Mexico and the Netherlands Antilles. Flamingos are known for their long spindly legs, graceful curved necks and bright pink feathers. Another unique feature is their large hooked bill, which is pink with a black tip. Generally, they grow to a height of 47 to 55 inches and have a wingspan of around five feet. Male and female flamingos look similar, but the males are larger. These birds generally breed between March and mid-July, and court each other with a variety of head movements, marches, wing displays and vocalisations. They construct large nests out of mud that may reach a foot in height and the female will usually lay one or two eggs, which she and the male take turns to incubate. In the wild, flamingos can live up to 30 years. In captivity their life span can be longer. They are sociable creatures and live and breed in large colonies of several hundred or even several thousand birds.