Investigating Laterality, Social Behavior, and Temperature Effects in Captive Chilean Flamingos, Phoenicopterus chilensis

Anderson M.J. & Laughlin C.P. (2014). Investigating Laterality, Social Behavior, and Temperature Effects in Captive Chilean Flamingos, Phoenicopterus chilensis. Avian Ecol. Behav. 25: 3-19. Two studies examined laterality, social behavior, and the influence of temperature on unipedal resting in several captive flocks of Chilean flamingos. Study 1 observed a small flock of Chil- ean flamingos at Elmwood Park Zoo (Norristown, PA, USA) and collected on-site weather data, while Study 2 employed a live online webcam to observe the Chilean flamingo flock at Houston Zoo (Houston, TX, USA) and obtained local weather data via an additional online source. Consistent with the idea of a thermoregulatory function of unipedal resting (cf. An- derson & Williams, 2010), both studies provided evidence of a negative relationship between temperature and the percentage of resting birds engaging in unipedal resting, such that more resting birds were seen engaging in unipedal resting on cooler days, and Study 2 evidenced that Chilean flamingos are more likely to engage in unipedal resting while resting in water than on land. Study 1 evidenced a relationship between agonistic behavior and pair-bonding, such that birds with a higher ratio of wins during aggressive encounters displayed stronger bonds with their preferred partners and were also more "desirable" to potential partners. Both studies failed to obtain evidence of lateral preferences in neck-resting or in unipedal resting support leg, suggesting a possible species difference between Chilean flamingos and Caribbean flamingos (cf. Anderson et al., 2009) in terms of lateral neck-resting preferences. Given the methodological limitations of the present studies, however, additional research is necessary to further investigate this possibility.