Flamingo Beaks: How They Eat in Salty Lakes

Today on Discovery Rangers, we learned how flamingos use their amazing, bent beaks to eat upside down in salty lakes! Now, it's your turn to become a Flamingo Food Finder right at home.

The Big Question

How can a flamingo's beak filter tiny food out of murky water?

What You'll Need

• A shallow bowl or pan
• Water
• Salt
• Small, lightweight objects (like tiny beads, glitter, or sprinkles)
• A slotted spoon or a strainer with very small holes

Mission Steps

1. Make Salty Water. Fill your shallow bowl with water and stir in a good amount of salt until it dissolves.
2. Add Flamingo Food. Sprinkle the tiny objects into the salty water. These are like the tiny shrimp and algae flamingos eat!
3. Dip and Filter. Carefully use the slotted spoon or strainer to scoop up some of the salty water and "food" particles.

Talk About It

• What did the salt do to the water?
• How did the slotted spoon or strainer act like a flamingo's beak?
• What would happen if the flamingo's beak didn't have its special filters?

Take It Further

For older rangers, try adding different sizes of "food" to the salty water. See if your strainer can catch all the different sizes, or if some escape. You can also experiment with how much salt you use and if it affects how well your "filters" work.

FAQ

Q: My child is having trouble getting the "food" to stay in the water. A: Make sure the "food" items are very light. You can also try mixing a little bit of sand or dirt into the water to make it murkier, which might help the tiny items float better before you try to scoop. Q: My child is getting frustrated with the strainer. A: Remind them that flamingos have special "lamellae" inside their beaks to filter food, and the strainer is just our simple model. It's okay if not everything gets caught! The goal is to see how filtering works.