Part of wetland in Navi Mumbai turns pink during lockdown

After numerous pink flamingos painted the Talawe wetland pink with their surprising arrival in Navi Mumbai, a new phenomenon that has grabbed the limelight.

Interestingly, a portion of Talawe wetland has become deep pink in colour, leaving the city-dwellers amazed. The wetland is located towards the south-eastern part and has turned pink in colour.
Taking into account this occurrence, the Bombay Natural History Society (BNHS) told a leading news daily that it is a unique event for Mumbai Metropolitan Region. Deepak Apte, Director of BNHS, told the news daily that the researchers have never seen anything like this along the creeks of Mumbai.

Researchers and microbiologists state that this pink colouration is the outcome of red algal bloom, that us multiplying in the saline water of Talawe wetland.
The likely reason behind this occurrence is the rising heat, humidity and increased water evaporation along with salinity, thus, rendering pink colour to a portion of the wetland.


It is the same pink algae, which gives flamingos their pink-tinted feathers. Ask how? Well, a BNHS told the press that the algae and bacteria make carotenoids, a reddish-orangish pigment, which is eaten by the flamingos. Consequently, as these birds attain maturity, their feathers also turn pinkish.
While BNHS claims that this event has happened for the first time in Mumbai, the environmentalists and locals argue that it occurred in 2019 as well.