Flamingos have always been a prominent part of Lake Natron in Tanzania’s ecosystem as many flock their every year for breeding. Breeding season can host up to 2.5 million flamingos all gracing Lake Natron’s habitat to repopulate. The documentary “The Crimson Wing: Mystery of the Flamingos” shares plenty of information on what makes Lake Natron a unique body of water and why flamingos have chosen it to be their seasonal home. The mystery behind this migration depends on several environmental factors the lake produces which can affect a good mating season or a bad one. The documentary exposes these factors as high salinity ideal for nesting, high and low precipitation, algae growth, and extreme water temperatures.

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        The first environmental factor the documentary discusses was salinity levels in the water perfect for flamingoes to nest. The lake’s pH levels have reached up to 12 making the water incredibly salty. Not only is this what flamingoes prefer for nesting, but the salinity makes predators for the flamingo stray away protecting them from danger. The documentary stated that “the caustic environment forms as a barrier of protection” making me believe that this body of water is used as protection for flamingoes. Another environmental factor discussed was precipitation levels and how a dry Lake Natron can be detrimental to flamingos’ safety because of “predators’ ability to catch flamingoes and destroy nests”. Even high precipitation plays a huge part on breeding as a ton of rain can lead to “flooded nests” and “ruined landscapes”. 

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        The last two factors the documentary talked about were algae growth and extreme temperatures. Algae growth draws in flamingoes so they can feast on “blue-green algae with red pigments called Spirulina” which is their primary food that gives their feathers a pink tint. Extreme water temperatures around and inside the lake make life hard to sustain for most predators. Flamingoes take advantage of temperatures reaching “60 degrees Celsius or 140 degrees Fahrenheit” using the lakes temperature as a shield from predators.

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        The Crimson Wing was a very well-made documentary about the unique ecosystem around Lake Natron and the spectacular event of flamingo migration. During the full duration of the documentary, I learned so much about Tanzania’s iconic lake and the science behind the contents of its ecosystem. While gaining tons of information I was able to enjoy snapshots of Lake Natron and the flamingoes who inhabit it making for an incredibly enjoyable cinematic nature documentary. I believe that the environmental factors discussed was fantastic supporting evidence for why flamingoes choose Lake Natron as its giant breeding ground. Even though some of the factors discussed have been known to negatively affect flamingoes and nesting, I believe that Tanzania holds the most ideal spawning ground for a declining flamingo population that can’t be found anywhere else in the entire world.