Ringing Flamingos

We had a fascinating day at Slimbridge in glorious sunshine today and an unexpected bonus.

The flamingo house was mysteriously closed but round the back half a dozen men started gathering interesting gear together. We had the area to ourselves and were treated to an interesting and educational half an hour whilst they put rings on birds going to another zoo. Before they are allowed to leave the Westlands Trust the flamingos have to be sexed, ringed and microchipped into their pectoral muscle tissue.

Wearing waterproof waders they went in to catch their victims. We could hear frantic splashing inside the house, a couple a short shrieks and from there emerged a wet and dishevelled man and a startled looking flamingo! He (a large bird as opposed to the smaller female) was ringed and a feather sample taken for DNA. The vet in charge kindly explained everything and to be fair he had more than enough on his plate.

So in answer to the question,'How many men does it take to ring a flamingo?' Well more than you would think!!