Wrong turn: Migrating flamingos in mortal danger after getting lost in Siberia
A video posted online of a group of flamingos stranded in Western Siberia is raising concerns that the birds will die without human help.
Russian social media VKontakte user Pavel Shaposhnikov posted the video on his page with the caption: "I'm shocked! Watched a flock of flamingos on River Tom! 25.10.2015 in the Kemerovo region.”
The average temperature in the Kemerovo region at this time of year is near zero degrees Celsius, and drops lower at night.
The birds have likely lost their way while migrating from Kazakhstan. This has happened before: the first such case of lost flamingos dates back to 1907 in the region's records.
Nikolay Skalon, a professor in the zoology and ecology department of Kemerovo State University, told Russian media that "younger birds lose their way because of changing weather when the autumn storms start," and added that they can only survive with human help.
Normally, the flamingos that spend the summers in Kazakhstan are meant to fly toward the Caspian sea for winter.
Temperatures in Kemerovo are set to drop to -10 degrees Celsius toward the end of the week - too cold for the pink birds, who are used to tropical and subtropical climes.
