Greater (flamingo)


Greater, also known as Flamingo One and Flamingo 1, was the world's oldest greater flamingo, residing at the Adelaide Zoo in Adelaide, Australia. It was at least 83 years old, having arrived at the zoo from either Cairo or Hamburg in either 1933, 1930, 1925, or 1919 at which point it was already a full-grown adult. Greater's sex was never determined.
On October 29, 2008, Greater was attacked and beaten by four teenagers. The almost blind bird was badly injured, but soon recovered. Its assailants were arrested, and initially charged with ill-treatment of an animal, however all charges were later dropped and nobody ended up being prosecuted.
In April 2013, zoo personnel noticed that Greater was beginning to show signs of arthritis, which they attempted to treat with medication. However, in late January 2014, Greater's health deteriorated even further, and the decision was made to euthanize Greater. At the time of its death, Greater was the only greater flamingo in captivity in Australia; there is a moratorium on the importation of flamingos into Australia.