Environment

Rare baby pink elephant caught on camera in Africa

by Amy Judd | March 21, 2009 at 11:21 am

2135 views | 36 Recommendations | 7 comments

A very rare baby pink elephant has been seen by a wildlife cameraman in the Okavango Delta with a herd of about 80 other elephants. Most likely, the pink elephant is an albino calf, which is really rare among African elephants.

However, due to the hot African sun, the chances of long term survival could be slim, due to the light colour of the skin, which could cause skin problems and blindness.

Mike Holding, who spotted the baby while filming for a BBC wildlife programme, said: "We only saw it for a couple of minutes as the herd crossed the river.

Albino elephants usually look pink in colour, not white. This is the first time that such a sighting has been known to take place in Botswana.
The cameramen are hopeful that the calf will adapt by using techniques such as caking itself in mud and sheltering in the shade of its mother.
Elephants can be 'masters of survival'.

0 See all footage | View Slideshow

Share: email story | add to any | | facebook | stumbleupon

recommend This comment thread is now closed

Pythiian1

at 11:48 on March 21st, 2009

Oh, s/he's so cute and pinkish ... I hope the calf's parents will cover her/him with mud...

kuuva

at 12:19 on March 21st, 2009

a pink elephant, i thought that would only be in the cartoons.

Gruttux

at 02:13 on March 22nd, 2009

Well, it's nice to see my picture on here. Unfortunately it was not the original one spotted but one I saw in Thailand in April 2007 in a sanctuary near Chang Mai. You can see more photos from there on http://www.flickr.com/photos/98621047@N00/

Yuliya Talmazan

at 11:07 on March 22nd, 2009

Just recently NP featured a story about a pink dolphin (see here). The nature seems to have gone on pink animal frenzy. Thanks for posting.

Patricia Turo

at 09:38 on March 28th, 2009

I've been to the Okavango Delta, and it was one of the most amazing travel experiences that I've had. It was when it was first open to the public and untouched. I saw large herds of elefants, we watched them for hours playing in the rivers. The sounds were something I'll never forget. Didn't see a pink one, but they are very protective of their young. This is one area of the world that is doing a very good job of protecting their wildlife. My daughter-in-law produced an IMAX movie called "Roar" along with people from the Delta that is really worth seeing. It is a beautiful region.