Jurong Bird Park, Singapore: Abandoned baby flamingo 'Squish' wears booties to protect his feet

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This was published 6 years ago

Jurong Bird Park, Singapore: Abandoned baby flamingo 'Squish' wears booties to protect his feet

Updated
Squish the baby flamingo.

Squish the baby flamingo.Credit: Wildlife Reserves Singapore

Squish, as the 1.6-kg Greater Flamingo is known, was born two-and-a-half months ago from an abandoned egg the keepers found and incubated at the park's Breeding and Research Centre.

The park says the handmade booties are to protect Squish's feet from the hot concrete surfaces outside the centre, a far cry from the cool, wet mudflats of its native South Africa.

Daily walks are needed for exercise and exposure to daylight to help strengthen the long-legged bird's bones.

One of Squish’s carers puts the special
handmade booties on Squish before his daily
walk.

One of Squish’s carers puts the special handmade booties on Squish before his daily walk.Credit: Wildlife Reserves Singapore

"When his feet are okay, we will send him back into the flock and hopefully he will be able to integrate with them," said Gerard Wan, an animal care officer at the bird park, which is managed by Wildlife Reserves Singapore.

Flamingos are currently classed as "relatively low risk of extinction" on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species.

It takes two years for young flamingos like Squish to lose their grey and white colour and take on the distinctive pink hue their species are famous for and which comes from the shrimp-like crustaceans in their diet.

Squish standing on his own on day five. Greater Flamingos are the tallest in the flamingo family and can grow to a height of almost 1.5 metres.

Squish standing on his own on day five. Greater Flamingos are the tallest in the flamingo family and can grow to a height of almost 1.5 metres.Credit: Wildlife Reserves Singapore

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