Flamingos are highly social birds whose welfare in captivity depends on large group sizes and appropriate water chemistry, while wild populations face threats from lake desiccation, disturbance, and climate change.
Flamingo welfare in captivity is significantly compromised when group sizes are too small for natural social expression, when water chemistry prevents the filter-feeding behaviour they are adapted for, or when wing clipping prevents the flight that is central to their behavioural repertoire. In the wild, lake desiccation from climate change and water abstraction threatens breeding sites that have no substitute. Flamingo colonies are highly sensitive to disturbance during nesting, and recreational activity near breeding lakes can cause mass nest abandonment.