Photo: Aransas National Wildlife Refuge
A rare pink grasshopper was spotted by the Aransas National Wildlife Refuge over the weekend — but it might not be around for too much longer.
Park officials believe this type of insect is a green-striped grasshopper, and in the photo they shared, you can see it's mostly pink with a green stripe on the top. "While rare, this pink coloration is actually due to a genetic mutation called erythrism and is caused by the overproduction of red pigments and the underproduction of dark pigments," the refuge wrote on Facebook.
Unfortunately, this critter might not live to see 12 months, like grasshoppers typically do. Due to its coloration, they're not well-camouflaged and are "much more likely to be eaten by predators."
See the photo for yourself below:
Last year, another pink grasshopper was spotted in the Lone Star State over St. Patrick's Day weekend. Dirk Parker named the rare critter Pinky and even bought a small habitat for it, filled with flowers and grass. At the time, Parker said he planned to donate Pinky to a habitat.