The flamingos are an iconic group of six species that seem unlikely in several ways: the overwhelming pinkness of their plumage; the elongation of their necks and legs; and their peculiarly designed bills that function only when turned upside-down.  Though flamingos are popularly imagined as adorning idyllic, palm-fringed, tropical lagoons, they rarely occur in such settings naturally.  The three widespread species favor expansive, shallow, salty or brackish wetlands, and the other three are uniquely adapted to harsh alkali lake environments where they thrive despite extremes of heat and cold.

Traditionally placed among other large, long-legged, wading bird families that they outwardly resemble, such as herons, ibises, and storks, but recent genetic studies have concluded that flamingos are most closely related to grebes, with both families representing isolated ancient lineages.  Internally, the Phoenicopteridae are sometimes divided into three genera: Phoenicopterus, the three larger species; Phoenicoparrus, the Lesser Flamingo; and Phoeniconaias, the two Andean species.