The Flamingos

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American Flamingo (Phoenicopterus ruber), National Zoo, Washington, D.C.: photo by Stevehdc, 2007

The elegance of the dance enchanted the comic in him.
And thereat the flamingos, standing
Upon upon one leg, cared not whether it was right or left,
But preferred to rest with heads on one side more

Than the other; the side on which a flamingo rests
Its head determines how aggressive it is
Toward the others in the flock. This fact was
Contained in his vigilant anthology.

Yes, but in his dreams... the old question,
Not whether they prefer the one leg or the other,
But why they stand on one leg at all, haunted
The colonist. To him, in his aethereal projections,

This sort of thing seemed part of the greater
Comedy, the comedy of the ordering
Of things. Could the flamingos have told him
The answer to this as to the many other wonderings,

In those dreams, he wondered, had he simply asked?

James's Flamingos (Phoenicopterus jamesi), Laguna Colorada, Bolivia: photo by Valdiney Pimenta, 20 August 2007

Lesser Flamingos (Phenicopterus minor), Ngorongoro Crater, Tanzania: photo by Charles J. Sharp, 2004

Lesser Flamingos (Phenicopterus minor), Ngorongoro Crater, Tanzania: photo by Charles J. Sharp, 2004

Lesser Flamingos (Phoenicopterus minor), Lake Nakuru, Kenya: photo by Jerzy Strzelecki, 1996

Greater Flamingos (Phoenicopterus roseus): photo by Johan H. Koeslag, 2008

Greater Flamingos (Phoenicopterus roseus), after taking off, Pocaram Lake, Andhra Pradesh, India: photo by J.M. Garg, 2008

Greater Flamingos (Phoenicopterus roseus), after taking off, Pocaram Lake, Andhra Pradesh, India: photo by J.M. Garg, 2008

Greater Flamingos (Phoenicopterus roseus), after taking off, Pocaram Lake, Andhra Pradesh, India: photo by J.M. Garg, 2008

Greater Flamingos (Phoenicopterus roseus), in flight, Pocaram Lake, Andhra Pradesh, India: photo by J.M. Garg, 2008

Greater Flamingos (Phoenicopterus roseus), landing, Pocaram Lake, Andhra Pradesh, India: photo by J.M. Garg, 2008



Greater Flamingos (Phoenicopterus roseus), Pocaram Lake, Andhra Pradesh, India: photo by J.M. Garg, 2008