Is beta carotene responsible for the color of flamingos?

Pink flamingos' feathers are actually a light gray color when they hatch. Life's Little Mysteries explains what turns them a ... The red and blue-green algae they consume is loaded with beta carotene, an organic chemical that contains a reddish-orange pigment. read more

Beta carotene is found in a lot of places in nature, but in this case, significantly in brine shrimp. Brine shrimp make up the bulk of a flamingoes diet - it's what attracts flamingoes to the vast lakes in the Ngorongoro crater. read more

Beta carotene is the same chemical that makes carrots orange—and it’s very important because it is a building block that the bodies of humans, birds and animals use to manufacture Vitamin A. In order to keep zoo flamingos in the pink, zookeepers mix another chemical called canthaxanthin into their food. read more

In captivity, the birds’ diets are supplemented with carotenoids such as beta-carotene and and canthaxanthin. Beta-carotene, responsible for the orange of carrots, pumpkins and sweet potatoes, is converted in the body to vitamin A. Canthaxanthin is responsible for the color of apples, peaches, strawberries and many flowers. read more

It is a nutritious natural chemical, or organic compound, called beta carotene in the brine shrimp that turns the flamingos’ feathers pink. Beta carotene is the same chemical that makes carrots orange—and it’s very important because it is a building block that the bodies of humans, birds and animals use to manufacture Vitamin A. read more

Young flamingos have gray plumage that changes color according to their diet. People eat foods containing carotenoids, too. The molecules act as antioxidants and are used to produce vitamin A. Examples of carotenoids humans eat include beta-carotene in carrots and lycopene in watermelon, but most people do not eat enough of these compounds to affect their skin color. read more