Flamingo Chick Hatches at the National Zoo

One of the newest additions at the Smithsonian Institution's National Zoo is a flamingo chick.

According to zoo officials, the chick hatched on July 29, and its gender is still unknown.

The zoo's flock of 63 birds normally produces 15 fertile eggs each breeding season, zoo officials said. This year, however, the flock had irregular mating patterns—which produced only six eggs. Then, because of improper nesting environments, only one egg remained.

Bird House keepers are raising the chick by hand. They feed the chick a formula that mimics crop milk and "flamingo pellets," which help turn the chick's feathers pink.

The chick will join the flock in the outdoor flamingo exhibit within the next few months. Zoo visitors will be able to recognize the chick by its smaller size and gray color. At around 6 months of age, it'll gain some pink feathers, officials stated. The feathers will be fully pink when it's 2 or 3 years old.

Check out more pics of this chick on the Smithsonian Instituion's National Zoo flickr page.