Picturesque pink salt pond draws influencers — and a warning: Stay away. Here’s why
Social media influencers have been flocking too close to a picturesque pink salt pond in California — and that can cause big problems, officials say.
All that increased activity threatens the pond’s fragile ecosystem that supports the birds that also flock there, not for photos but for survival, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service said in an Oct. 13 post on Facebook.
The pond, known officially as Pond A12, is part of the Don Edwards San Francisco Bay National Wildlife Refuge, officials said.
“These ponds provide a home to migratory and resident birds, including threatened and endangered birds like the cute western snowy plover,” officials said in the post. “To keep you and the wildlife safe, stay on the Alviso Slough Trail to take your pictures.”
There are plenty of photos tagged with “#pinksaltpond” on Instagram that show people posing, strolling and even dancing right at the pink-hued water’s salted edge.
Officials have seen a “big increase” in the amount of tourists venturing off the trail for a close-up shot of the pond, refuge wildlife biologist Rachel Tertes told SFGATE.
“We don’t want people getting stuck in the water or leaving trash and using drones — doing a variety of different activities that we don’t allow at the refuge,” Tertes told the outlet. “We have seen an uptick.”
She told the outlet refuge staff have added more signs in an effort to “make it a little more clear to people” that their off-trail photoshoots can threaten “protected bird species, migratory birds and off-limits areas.”
The San Francisco Bay National Wildlife Refuge Complex included a photo comparing the pond with and without the western snowy plovers, as well as an example of a Fish and Wildlife Service ranger posing from the trail overlooking the pond with the words “great shot” and “wow!” on both sides of the ranger’s face.
“Please take pictures from the trail, not the pond,” officials added.
As for what causes the pond’s pink hue, officials explained: “Don’t worry, it’s natural. Tiny microscopic organisms specialized to live in very salty water live here, including the microscopic algae known as Dunaliella salina and halobacterium.”
Portion of Pacific Ocean turns pink off California coast — and it will happen again
Wetlands turn the color of ‘strawberry milk’ in Australia. See the ‘rare’ phenomenon
Pink snow? Yellowstone visitors could see ‘colorful patches’ on the snow’s surface
