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A flock of fluffy Caribbean flamingo chicks has hatched at Chester Zoo

The 21 new chicks are being hand-fed by keepers at Chester Zoo.

A fluffy new flock of 21 Caribbean flamingo chicks has hatched at Chester Zoo.

The chicks began to break out of their shells in late June, bringing the zoo’s total number of Caribbean flamingos up to 120.

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All 21 youngsters are being hand-fed by zookeepers four times a day, and will receive this special attention for around another five weeks.

Posting a video of the new youngsters to Facebook, Chester Zoo said: “21 fluffy flamingos have hatched!”

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Mark Vercoe, assistant curator of birds, said: “Hand-feeding young flamingos is a really intricate and demanding challenge, but these chicks will form part of another important breeding colony and so we need to make sure that each and every one makes it through to adulthood.”

Unlike the colourful adults, flamingo chicks are a whitish-grey colour, and will develop their pink feathers at around six months old.

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The flamingo’s vibrant colour comes from the rich sources of carotenoid pigments in the algae and small crustaceans the birds eat.

Once all of the new chicks are developed enough to fully feed themselves, the group will move to another zoo to help form a brand new colony.

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