Baby flamingos at the Oklahoma City Zoo are getting a peek at their new family.

For the past four months, zookeepers have been raising the 11 chicks by hand, zoo spokeswoman Tara Henson said. Wednesday afternoon, the birds were moved from the confines of a private area to a public space next door to the zoo's adult flamingo flock.

"In the zoo world, we call it a howdy," Henson said.

The flamingos came from eggs brought to the zoo in July from the Miami Metrozoo, said Darcy Henthorn, curator of birds and the children's zoo. The eggs were recovered from a closed-down racetrack that has become a home for a colony of wild flamingos. The zoo donated $2,000 to a flamingo conservation program in exchange for the eggs.

The 20 eggs began hatching soon after their arrival in July. Some never hatched or didn't survive, Henthorn said, but the remaining 11 are healthy and growing.

Keepers fed them by hand. The keepers take them on walks, leading the birds around the yard to strengthen their gangly legs.

For now, the young flamingos, which still have the gray feathers of youth, will be in a segregated area next to the adult birds, Henthorn said, but they'll be able to hear and see their older, pink pals.

The chicks will continue sleeping inside until they're older and stronger, zoo officials said.

Source: Carrie Coppernoll, The Oklahoman