By Audrey McAvoy — The Associated Press
A pond in Hawaii has turned a pink color so bright it could very well be part of the set of the movie Barbie. This is a strange phenomenon that, according to scientists, could be a product of drought. Authorities warn against entering the water or drinking it.
Staff at Kealia Pond National Wildlife Refuge in Maui have been monitoring the pink water since Oct. 30.
"I got a report from someone who was walking on the beach and called me and said, 'There's something strange going on here,'" said Bret Wolfe, the shelter's manager.
Wolfe was concerned that the bright pink could be a sign of algae blooms, but lab tests found that toxic algae were not causing the color. Instead, an organism called halobacteria could be the culprit.
The Kealia Pond National Wildlife Refuge in Maui has been monitoring the pink water since Oct. 30. Kealia Pond National Wildlife Refuge in Maui
Halobacteria are a type of archaea, or single-celled organisms, that thrive in bodies of water with high levels of salt. The salinity within the outlet area of Kealia Pond is currently above 70 parts per thousand, which is twice the salinity of seawater. Wolfe said the lab will need to conduct a DNA analysis to definitively identify the organism.
Experts believe Maui's drought may have contributed to the situation. Normally, the Waikapu Creek flows into Kealia Pond and raises water levels there, but, according to Wolfe, that hasn't happened in a long time.
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When it rains, the creek usually flows into Kealia's main pond and then into the exit area which is now pink. This will reduce salinity and potentially change the color of the water.
"That might be what makes it go away," Wolfe said.
No one at the shelter had ever seen the pond this color before, not even the volunteers who have been near it for 70 years. However, the pond has gone through periods of drought and high salinity before, and Wolfe isn't sure why the color has changed now.
Curious visitors flocked to the park after photos of the pink pond surfaced on social media.
"We'd rather they come hear about our mission to conserve native and endangered waterfowl and the restoration of our wetlands. But no, they're here to see the pink water," Wolfe joked, adding that he understands everyone's fascination.
"If that's what gets them there, that's fine," he said. "It's clean."
The wildlife refuge is a wetland that provides nesting, feeding, and resting habitat for the endangered Hawaiian stilt, known as the aeo, and the Hawaiian coot, or alae keokeo. It is also home to migratory birds during the winter.
The water doesn't appear to be harming the birds, Wolfe added.
As a wildlife refuge, people are not supposed to get into the pond or let their pets into the water, regardless of their color. But officials are taking extra precautions to warn people not to enter the water or eat any fish caught there because the source of the color has not yet been identified.