The Flamingos' Future: Lessons From A Race To Rescue Thousands of Abandoned Chicks

A lesser flamingo parent feeds its chick at breeding site at Kamfers Dam, South Africa. A drought that hit the area earlier this year forced flamingo parents to abandon thousands of chicks, which sent volunteers scrambling to save the birds. (Credit: By Stephan Olivier/ shutterstock) The incessant “eep, eep, eep” of hundreds of hungry flamingo chicks bounces off the concrete walls of a feeding room at the SANCCOB wildlife sanctuary in Cape Town, South Africa. Teri Grendzinski reaches into a pen and plucks out a fluffy, pale pink chick. She grips it gently with one hand. The bird opens its mouth eagerly as her syringe squirts out a kind of warm shrimp milkshake. It’s noisy, hot work. To keep the chicks warm away from their nests, their rooms are heated to a balmy 86 degrees Fahrenheit. And there’s so many birds, volunteers have to feed them around the clock in ...