text: A rare black flamingo amazed bird watchers when it was spotted feeding among a group of the traditionally pink birds in Cyprus. The migratory bird was spotted at a salt lake near the British RAF base at Akrotiri on the island's south coast close to the resort city of Limassol. Normally, the graceful birds have a pink hue caused by the levels of beto-Carotene in their diet. Scroll down for video . Ruffling feathers: The unusual black flamingo was spotted near the coastal city of Limassol on Cyprus by birdwatchers . Alexia Perdiou, the base's assistant environment officer, said it could be one-of-a-kind. 'Of course we are all very excited because we believe it could be the only flamingo of its kind in the world and very little is known about it,' she said. 'We are expecting a lot of visitors over the next few days.' A black flamingo was reportedly last spotted in Israel in 2014 and aside from its colour, it is no different to the hundreds of pink flamingos which flock to the salt lakes of Cyprus every spring. Experts believe a rare genetic irregularity known as "melanism" can generate more melanin than usual, turning a flamingo's feathers a dark colour. Migrating: The bird looked very healthy despite its unusual hue and is believed to be heading to Turkey to breed . Martin Hellicar of the conservation group BirdLife Cyprus said the black-coloured flamingo was not unique, though acknowledged they were uncommon in the Mediterranean. He said it was probably migrating to its breeding area in Turkey after spending the winter elsewhere. He added that the flamingo stopped on its journey in the salt lake to feed on brine shrimp.
target: Bird watchers photographed the rare bird near British RAF base at Akrotiri on the island's south coast .
  The last recorded sighting of a black flamingo was in Israel in 2014 .
  Dark colouring thought to be caused by genetic irregularity where it can generate more melanin than usual .