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Where To Find (But Not Harass) The Pink Dolphin

March 3, 2009 at 9:56 AM | by | Comments (3)

Girls growing up in the late 80/early 90s will be tickled...er...pink to know that a Lisa Frank illustration has come to life. Now all we need is this rose-hued dolphin to spout a rainbow out its blowhole and our long-lasting wish will be entirely fulfilled.

Pinky the Dolphin is a rare albino dolphin who inhabits the waters of Lake Calcasieu, an inland saltwater estuary, north of the Gulf of Mexico in Louisiana. He was discovered by a charter boat captain who found the dolphin swimming in a pod of four. (He also snapped this picture above.)

Naturally, a pink dolphin is attracting a lot of attention from Lisa Frank fans to biologists who we realize are probably one and the same.

While there have been pink bottlenosed dolphins spotted in South America, this is the first one to inhabit a saltwater lake in Louisiana and conservationists are concerned about too many tourists scaring the dolphin.

Regina Asmutis-Silvia, senior biologist with the Whale and Dolphin Conservation Society, said: "I have never seen a dolphin colored in this way in all my career. "It is a truly beautiful dolphin but people should be careful, as with any dolphins, to respect it - observe from a distance, limit their time watching, don't chase or harass it.

The dolphin can be found swimming the waters of the Calcasieu shipping channel which feeds into the larger Lake Charles. Charter boats and services are plentiful but we really don't want to encourage anyone to go on Pink Dolphin-Watching trips.

Oh, there's one teeny tiny detail that we forgot to mention. Because of its albinism the dolphin has reddish eyes. Hmmm...we think biologists and animal-rights activists should promote this pink dolphin as less Elle Woods and more, Demon Dolphin. That might be a more effective way of protecting the animals from tourists.

Or they could just copy a move out of the airlines playbook and charge 'em fees. $15 for the first picture, $25 for the second picture....

Related Stories:
· Pink Dolphin-Watching [Telegraph UK]
· Visit Lake Charles [Official Site]

[Photo: Erik Carter; Telegraph UK]

Comments (3)

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I LOVE IT

Not surprisingly, big Lisa Frank fan here.
egw on March 3, 2009 at 11:19 AM #Permalink

Better Than Snowflake

This is one nice dolphin. I did not have (I swear), but do remember some sweet Lisa Frank Trapper Keepers.
kjb on March 3, 2009 at 12:25 PM #Permalink

Pink Dolphin spotted near Louisiana in the Gulf

Wonderful! Can you believe it? This was a first for me but I just had to share.
Felecia Jackson Perea on March 3, 2009 at 10:44 PM #Permalink

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