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Reply	kleer001 says: because if they lifted both legs they'd fall down!  (no votes) Tags: domestic science, animals.
	posted on 2008-10-15 20:11:00 | Report abuse

Reply	Katherine says: I don't know why birds do it, but I do know that I often do it as well, usually when I am required to stand for more than a few minutes in an informal setting if I am wearing bare feet and clothes that permit the posture, which involves resting the raised foot on the other leg, somewhere between the groin and the knee. I especially do it preparing food or washing the dishes. All my life people have commented on my peculiar habit but to me it is both natural and comfortable, and I do it unthinkingly for no other reason than that it is simply more comfortable, in a way that I cannot define. I assume that my long legs and mobile hips make it more easy for me than for the short and inflexible, but I don't know any other lanky people who stand on one leg. So conformation, motivation, opportunity, and social setting are needed. TV programmes and magazines show that Australian aborigines and African bush people also do it. I recently read a brochure from my GP that said that people with low blood pressure (which includes me) will often stand cross-legged in an unconscious effort to reduce the flow of blood to the feet. Maybe standing on one leg is also to do with low blood pressure. Or maybe its purpose is just to rest one foot and then the other, but I haven't found putting all my weight on one foot all that restful for the load-bearing foot, and so have to change legs every few minutes.  (no votes) Tags: animals, planet earth.
	posted on 2008-10-16 00:43:00 | Report abuse

Reply	Chaz says: Obviously, if they didn't stand on one leg they would fall over!  (no votes) Tags: animals, planet earth.
	posted on 2008-10-16 20:38:00 | Report abuse

Reply	Anonymous says: The Flamingo will stand with one leg in the water and the other tucked in its feathers, it does this to keep warm. By tucking up one leg you are reducing the amount of time a leg is kept in the water and thus how much warmth is lost and how much drag will be created by the water when you try to take off away from a predator.  (no votes) Tags: animals, planet earth.
	posted on 2008-10-17 12:42:00 | Report abuse

Reply	Anonymous says: He only has one leg...I think Chaz wins though!  (no votes) Tags: animals, planet earth.
	posted on 2008-10-17 13:55:00 | Report abuse

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