A rare pink dolphin was spotted filming in Louisiana waters recently. The video of the mammal was shot by Thurman Gustin, who has been fishing for more than 20 years. He spotted not one but two pink dolphins in Cameron Parish near the Gulf of Mexico on July 12 and shared the video in a post on social media.
He even compared it to some of his most remarkable wildlife experiences, such as witnessing a bobcat swimming across in bayou in Texas, an event that left a lasting impression on him.
“As we were going I noticed something just under the water that I knew wasn’t normal. I stopped the boar and up popped this beautiful pink dolphin. I had to record it, he further said.
Although there is a species known as the pink river dolphin inhabiting freshwater river basins in South America, it was unlikely to be the species Mr. Gustin encountered. The most probable candidates were bottlenose dolphins, typically seen in the gray coloration, common in the Gulf of Mexico.
According to the Blue World Institute, dolphins displaying pink or white coloring are rare and often attributed to albinism. Unfortunately, these unique creatures garner human attention and in some unfortunate instances, may be captured and held in captivity.
The dolphin that Gustin encountered might have been Pinky, a renowned dolphin from Southern Louisiana. Pinky was first sighted in 2007 in the Calcasieu River, and shares similar characteristics of an albino dolphin, with reddish eyes and visible blood vessels due to the lack of pigment.
