The Animal Photo Archive : flamingos

Embedded comment:
American Flamingos, (Phoenicopterus ruber), at the Smithsonian's National Zoological Park in Washington, D.C. ==Smithsonian Photo by Jessie Cohen. (c) 1992 Smithsonian Institution. Do not reproduce without written permission. - - - - - - The National Zoo, as defined in its 1889 charter, is established for "the advancement of science and the instructional recreation of the people". With 3 million visitors each year, the Zoo is a leading international center for animal exhibition, biological and veterinary research, conservation, and public education in conservation and in the humane care of animals. The Zoo houses its public collection on a 163-acre site at Rock Creek Park in Washington; and maintains a major conservation, animal breeding and research center on 3,150 acres in Front Royal, Virginia. The National Zoo has transformed its principal focus to a BioPark by shedding traditional distinctions between plants and animals, aquatic and terrestrial life, vertebrates and invertebrates, and even science and art. The resulting BioPark emphasizes the inter-relationships between plants and animals, living and extinct organisms, water and land, form and function. The influence of man on nature, including domestication, agriculture, hunting, art and environmental impact are being featured.