Sunday, July 30, 2006
Get a Silly Answer?
Ask a silly question....
Q. Do flamingos turn pink from eating shrimp?
A. Actually, most of that coral coloring comes from algae and plankton. Flamingos consume vast amounts of these tiny snackables, which are loaded with a brilliant-pink pigment called canthaxanthin. In some habitats, flamingos also eat algae-munching brine shrimp and other tiny crustaceans, allowing them to pick up some secondary color.
In both cases, the pigment enters the birds' bloodstream during digestion and gets sequestered in growing feathers. In some zoos, where the birds don't always get enough natural pink chow, handlers feed them canthaxanthin supplements to make sure they match the cotton candy.
In addition to flamingos, says Nancy Clum, assistant curator of ornithology for the Wildlife Conservation Society, "scarlet ibis, spoonsills and orioles all depend on food for their coloration."
So, what would happen if you started subsisting on algae-shrimp smoothies? You'd absorb mostly yellow pigments, develop a freakish glow and look tacky as hell out on the lawn.
From the St Paul Pioneer Press
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