Can Flamingos Fly?

By Staff WriterLast Updated March 25, 2020

Flamingos can fly, and they even migrate short distances in times of food scarcity. Greater flamingos, the familiar pink birds of Florida, have a wingspan of almost 5 feet. They are able to fly hundreds of miles and can both take off from and land on water or dry land.

Flamingos do not have the seasonal migrations characteristic of their cousins the geese. However, when flocks do migrate to new feeding grounds, they fly in formations similar to geese. Flamingos are large birds, so in order to take flight they need a running start. Once in the air, they fully extend their necks and legs. Flamingo flocks in flight are very noisy, with honking coming from thousands of individual birds.