The greater flamingo was described by Peter Simon Pallas in 1811.

It was previously thought to be the

same species as the American flamingo (Phoenicopterus ruber), but because of coloring differences of
its head, neck, body, and bill, the two flamingos are now most commonly considered separate species.
The greater flamingo has no subspecies.

The greater flamingo is the largest living species of flamingo, averaging 110–150 cm (43–59 in) tall and
weighing 2–4 kg (4.4–8.8 lb). The largest male flamingos have been recorded at up to 187 cm (74 in) tall
and 4.5 kg (9.9 lb).

Most of the plumage is pinkish-white, but the wing coverts are red and the primary and secondary flight
feathers are black. The bill is pink with a restricted black tip, and the legs are entirely pink. The call is a
goose-like honking.

Chicks are covered in gray fluffy down. Subadult flamingos are paler with dark legs. Adults feeding chicks
also become paler, but retain the bright pink legs. The coloration comes from the carotenoid pigments
in the organisms that live in their feeding grounds. Secretions of the uropygial gland also contain
carotenoids. During the breeding season, greater flamingos increase the frequency of their spreading
uropygial secretions over their feathers and thereby enhance their color. This cosmetic use of uropygial
secretions has been described as applying "make-up".

It is found in parts of Africa, southern Asia (Bangladesh and coastal regions of Pakistan, India, and Sri
Lanka), the Middle East (Iran, Turkey, Cyprus, Israel, Lebanon, the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, and
Bahrain) and southern Europe (including Spain, Albania, North Macedonia, Greece, Portugal, Italy, and
the Camargue region of France). The most northern breeding spot is the Zwillbrocker Venn in western
Germany, close to the border with the Netherlands. They have been recorded breeding in the United
Arab Emirates at three different locations in the Abu Dhabi Emirate. In Gujarat, a state of India,
flamingos can be observed at the Nal Sarovar Bird Sanctuary, Khijadiya Bird Sanctuary, Flamingo City,
and in the Thol Bird Sanctuary. They remain there during the entire winter season.

The greater flamingo resides in mudflats and shallow coastal lagoons with salt water. Using its feet, the
bird stirs up the mud, then sucks water through its bill and filters out small shrimp, seeds, blue-green
algae, microscopic organisms, and mollusks. The greater flamingo feeds with its head down, and its
upper jaw is movable and not rigidly fixed to its skull.[9]

Like all flamingos, this species lays a single chalky-white egg on a mud mound.

The typical lifespan in captivity, according to Basel Zoo, is over 60 years.[10]

Adult greater flamingos have few natural predators. Eggs and chicks may be eaten by raptors, crows,
gulls, and the marabou stork (Leptoptilos crumenifer); an estimated half of the predation of greater
flamingo eggs and chicks is from the yellow-legged gull (Larus michahellis).[11]

The primary threats to flamingo populations are bacteria, toxins, and pollution in water supplies, which
is usually run-off from manufacturing companies, and encroachment on their habitat.
The first recorded zoo hatch was in 1959 at Zoo Basel. In Zoo Basel's breeding program, over 400 birds
have been hatched with between 20 and 27 per year since 2000.[12] The oldest known greater flamingo
was a bird at the Adelaide Zoo in Australia that died aged at least 83 years. The bird's exact age is not
known; he was already a mature adult when he arrived in Adelaide in 1933. He was euthanized in
January 2014 due to complications of old age.