The Lake That Dyes Flamingos Pink
22 March 2017 | Mri Grout
It’s fairly common knowledge that flamingos get their famous pink colour due to eating a large amount of pink shrimp. However have you ever wondered how the shrimp themselves become pink? For despite what one may think, brine shrimp are not naturally that colour either and must eat a lot of a specific type of bacteria called Halobacterium to turn pink enough to in turn turn flamingos pink. Wow, ain’t that a lot of pink!? In fact, it’s so much pink that wherever this bacteria lives also turns that famous bubblegum pink. A fantastic example of this is Torrevieja’s Pink Lake, which is open to the public. However, if you try to swim here, you’d quickly find that the only stroke you could do is a pathetically executed breaststroke due to the complete shallowness of the lake. Nevertheless, it’s a very popular spot due to the “spa treatment” mud found on its shore and the ridiculous salt quantity in its water. It’s this high quantity that creates the perfect environment for Halobacterium to thrive enough to feed 1000s of flamingos a year as well as create a Dead Sea floating experience for anyone willing to chance having salt rubbed into any forgotten/hidden wounds.
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Travel Tip #4
Would you go 'swimming' in Torrevieja's pink lake?