Gediz Delta in western Turkey serves as a "kindergarten" for young flamingos who learn to fly in the company of their parents. The delta, stretching across the province of Izmir, is one of the major artificial breeding areas for birds in the world. Every August, some 18,000 flamingos, hatched about two months ago, land on an artificial island, their nursery. By the end of the month, they will be ready to fly further south to the Mediterranean Basin.
An artificial incubation ground set up by the Directorate of Nature Protection and National Parks in 2012 on land measuring 6.5 acres hosts flamingos known as Phoenicopterus roseus, which hatches in May usually. In a month, they try to get used to the waters around the island, spending most of their time there. First, their parents feed them artemia salina or brine shrimp to baby flamingos. The food gives the birds born black their pink-white colors two years after birth.
Accompanying their parents, they learn how to flap their wings against the wind. When they are 3-month-old, they are able to fly and live on their own. Still, they are under the careful watch of wildlife crews who take measures to ensure that they are not disturbed by human beings during their time in the sanctuary.
The sanctuary, one of the two breeding sites in Turkey, disappeared over time due to erosion from waves. However, after the creation of the artificial island, the flamingo population increased.
The flamingo population in Turkey makes up about 34% of the entire flamingo population in Europe. The country is among the main destinations and habitats of the birds, along with France and Spain. Up to 71,000 flamingos winter in Turkey every year. They are "semi-migratory" birds and some prefer migrating to other Mediterranean countries while others spend the entire year in Turkey. Flamingos usually stay in the Aegean, Central Anatolia and the Mediterranean regions of Turkey, though some prefer the Black Sea and Marmara regions. Lake Tuz and Gediz Delta in western Turkey are among the most significant breeding grounds for flamingos.
Lake Tuz, which hosts a diverse array of other birds, was a graveyard of hundreds of baby and adult flamingos last year, whose carcasses were found strewn across its dried parts. The mass deaths last summer prompted concerns since Lake Tuz is a sanctuary for most newborn flamingos who learn how to fly over the wetland before leaving in the autumn.
