Low clouds break and the rising sun illuminates the James's flamingos feeding in the alkaline salt waters of Laguna Lejia.
James's flamingo
(Phoenicoparrus jamesi), AKA the puna flamingo, is one of the three species of flamingo found in Chile and of the six species in the world.
Like all flamingos, they are omnivorous filter-feeders, filling their beaks with salt lake water and sifting it out to eat plants, insects, shrimps, and fish.
Laguna Lejía (Bleach Lagoon) is a salt lake in the Atacama desert.
It is located in the Chilean Altiplano of the Antofagasta Region,
100 km (62 mi) south-east of San Pedro de Atacama,
at an altitude of 4325 m (14,200 ft).
It is shallow and has no outlet, currently covering an area of
nearly 2 km² (0.77 sq mi) with an average depth of 1.2 m (4 ft).
#251 in Explore on May 24, 2023.
© 2021 Jacques de Selliers. All rights reserved.
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