SeaWorld Orlando Welcomes New Flamingo Chick
Free photo by Petr Ganaj from Pexels
SeaWorld Orlando’s flamingo flamboyance just got one chick bigger!
On Wednesday, the theme park welcomed its first flamingo chick of the summer: Fiesta.
Fiesta hatched on June 28. She is not yet available for public viewing, nor is she with the rest of the flamingos that SeaWorld Orlando have in their exhibit - she still needs to be nurtured into something bigger and stronger before she can take on that stage of life. But soon enough, visitors will have another flamingo to admire.
“One of the primary things is that she’s weaning off of her formula,” Senior Zoo Specialist Iliana Marttila told FOX35 on Wednesday. “She’s getting introduced to pellets, we put them in water, and it’s pellets that are specifically made for flamingos. It has all the nutrition that she needs, and she’s eating it on her own now. And right now, she’s preferring the pellets, so she’s already telling us she’s ready.”
Marttila was tasked with raising Fiesta since she hatched. Fiesta is the third flamingo chick Marttila has cared for at SeaWorld, and as is customary at the park, she was given naming rights to her fabulous fowl offspring.
“They all have their unique personalities, and it’s exciting to see them come into their own being,” she explained. “This one in particular, we called her Fiesta, because she likes to do this little dance. She won’t do it on cue, but every now and then, you’ll see her and it looks like a party.”
As part of raising the chick, Marttila had to bring Fiesta home with her and tend to the flamingo as if it were her own child. Flamingo chicks must be fed every four hours, and caregivers are tasked with making an egg-based formula from scratch. She said it’s the most difficult piece of the puzzle.
“The biggest challenge is honestly feeding them, because you want to make sure you do it in a safe way,” she said.
Spending so much time with the flamingo chicks creates a serious connection between caregiver and chick.
“It’s just like a baby,” Marttila said. “To be able to take her home and cuddle and build bonds, it’s really great.”
Like babies, Fiesta won’t stay a chick forever. She’s already showing signs of independence, much to the bittersweet excitement of her caretaker.
“It’s a process, but I know it’s good for her,” the zoo specialist said. “It’s still nice that she lets me pick her up and cuddle her.”
