Abstract
Adult Greater Flamingos ( Phoenicopterus roseus ) are sexually dimorphic, with males being on average larger and heavier than females. However, there is no practical way to sex the chicks by their morphology. Here we describe a method relying on quick and easy DNA extraction from feathers. A PCR test employing primers to amplify introns whose lengths usually differ between the CHD-W and the CHD-Z genes allow sex discrimination. This method is thus a fast, accurate and inexpensive protocol to sex flamingo chicks from feathers bulbs sampled in the field.