Annisa Essack | kzn@radioislam.org.za
30 May 2023 | 09:30 CAT
1 min read

Photo Credit: Free Me Wildlife

Howick’s Free Me Wildlife team was baffled when a lesser flamingo, a juvenile, around one to four years old, was brought in by a Winterton farmer last week.

The lesser flamingo is a threatened or protected species (Tops) generally found near areas with salt pans and is the smallest of the flamingo species in the world.

He discovered the flamingo on his farm and realised it could not fly. After a complete examination by the FreeMe team, X-rays revealed the bird had a badly fractured femur that was infected.

FreeMe CEO Wade Whitehead said that the bird died as planning was done for the surgery, likely due to stress.

Whitehead said it was strange that the bird was found in the Winterton area. He deduced that it must have been flying over with a flock and was injured in a power line before it was found by the farmer in the field.