A Safari Ranger Spots A Rare Pink Baby Elephant In A South African Reserve

"This is by far one of the most interesting things I have seen in the wild."

Chelsi

• Published in Animals
• January 12, 2022

When someone says they're starting to see pink elephants, they don't usually mean literally. Seeing pink elephants are common sayings for people who are drunk and hallucinating.

So what happens when there are actual pink elephants? Well, it is possible but it's rare as elephants are known to be grayish-brown in nature.

They are the same color as the soil of their habitats. But sometimes nature has its way of surprising the world and it produces an unnatural pink-colored baby elephant.

Since elephants are known to travel in herds, it's very easy to spot a standout. In the MalaMala Game Reserve in Kruger National Park, a pink baby elephant was seen trailing along with the rest of the herd.

He was the smallest among them and was believed to be experiencing a phenomenon called leucism, which was the lack of pigmentation. It's a condition similar but not entirely like albinism.

This makes the baby elephant appear to have a light complexion but unlike animals suffering from albinism, its eyes aren't as pale. His champagne pink skin makes him look like he got out straight from a storybook.

Animals just like these baby elephants are magnificent to see. This does mean it needs to be extra strong because of the survival aspects that are affected because of his color.

The pink baby elephant frolicks peacefully among his herd

The reserve is large enough that there is space for people to come close to them

Conditions like this isn't well documented in regular books so it's a unreal sight to see

A luck safari ranger, Tim Jansen van Vuuren, was the one who saw the pink elephant as he was leading a group through the reserve. The ranger from Benoni, South Africa was joyous to experience seeing something out of the ordinary.

He recounted how the herd of elephants let the group come near the baby pink elephant and so they experienced seeing him up close. There is potential though that they may never encounter the elephant as they usually move across other neighboring reserves and the area is extremely large.

Tim had been visiting the 'bush' for most of his life and had only encountered something like this once. He's also been working in that environment for about six years and even then, there wasn't an incident that was close to seeing the pink baby elephant.

Although there is worry that this baby elephant would have a hard time surviving

Not because of health but becaus he would stand out to preys as they travel

There is chance that he would grow into his regular color when he gets older

Usually elephants that are suffering from Leucism would grow darker and the pink would stay behind their ears

A wildlife photographer captured pictures of the elephants beautifully

Here's a close up of this rare pink elephant nuzzling against an adult elephant

And another one following the herd

Nature really has a way of surprising us. Being a base pillar of people's and animals' lives, it works in very extraordinary ways.

The safari ranger Tim along with the group he was leading was lucky to present when the herd of elephants was traveling. It gave them a glimpse of a rarity and was welcomed to come near them.

The only hope for the pink elephant is that he wouldn't suffer from the health consequences that come from his genetic mutation. His sticking out is both a beauty and a threat so it'll be a tough road ahead of him.

Did you enjoy this story about the rare pink elephant? You can share your thoughts in the comments

Chelsi