Altiplano

George Steinmetz

National Geographic Magazine

Colony of james' flamingos take flight from the shallow waters of Bolivia's 14,300 ft. Laguna Colorada, which is colored brick orange due to natural hot springs which provide nutrients for red algae to bloom. The birds feed on diatoms less than 1mm in diameter. The lake has a number of small islets of borax, as well as the largest population of flamingos of any Altiplano lake. There are three species of flamingos here: andean, chilean, and james'. There are only 50,000 james' flamingos in the world and 30,000 of them nest here each summer. They predominate on this lake at 4,300 m. due to their ability to survive on a diet of diatoms and algae.

George Steinmetz, "Altiplano," in POYi Archive, Item #41858, http://archive.poy.org/items/show/41858 (accessed May 19, 2024).