Pink Dolphins: Rare Albino Amazon River Dolphin Spotted in USA

"I just happened to see a little pod of dolphins, and I noticed one that was a little lighter.

"It was absolutely stunningly pink.

"I had never seen anything like it. It's the same color throughout the whole body and it looks like it just came out of a paint booth.

"The dolphin appears to be healthy and normal other than its coloration, which is quite beautiful and stunningly pink.

"The mammal is entirely pink from tip to tail and has reddish eyes indicating it's albinism. The skin appears smooth, glossy pink and without flaws.

"I have personally spotted the pink dolphin 40 to 50 times in the time since the original sighting as it has apparently taken up residence with its family in the Calcasieu ship channel.

But, I am assured, Hong Kong is the best place in the world to see the Indo-Pacific humpback species. So I board the bus to link up with a Hong Kong Dolphinwatch excursion into the South China Sea.

On the way to our departure point on Lantau Island, we are told no one knows exactly why the dolphins are pink rather than the usual grey we see off Australian shores. The Hong Kong dolphins are born grey, then turn pink. They live in fairly gloomy water with no predators, so pink is fine in their habitat...

Then the amazing happens. Forty-five minutes into our trip, a pink beak appears in the water. It seems to do a 360, then out of the ocean flips a pink-as-fairy-floss dolphin!

Four of them are nearby. They frolic and loll and seem to be enjoying our company. The 360-degree manoeuvre, it soon becomes apparent, is their way of checking the coast is clear before they breach. They stick their heads up, check in all directions and bang! They're up, out and splashing down merrily. The proximity of fishing boats and anchored cargo ships suggests why they exercise caution.

It's just so clever. They are beautiful. For an hour we sit and watch them and they seem to watch us.