At first sight, we
couldn't believe our
eyes. She was a chimp,
but with white hair,
one blue and one brown
eye. After inquiring
the experts, it turned
out that Pinkie was
the only known albino
chimpanzee in the world.
When she first arrived
at Tacugama late in
1999, she was only weeks
old and needed to be
cared for at Bala's
(the project director
of Tacugama) home.
Despite our worries
that other chimps might
reject Pinkie because
of her color, she was
successfully introduced
to the chimps of Tacugama.
The process of her integration
to Bruno's group was
filmed in the documentary
"Tacugama: the
Forest of Hope"
("The Amazing White
Chimp" in the US)
which is now broadcast
worldwide.
Unfortunately, on one
rainy afternoon of April
2002, after 9 months
since the initial integration,
was found lifeless in
the enclosure. It was
very sad to accept the
fact and it still is
a big mystery how she
died. She was not suffering
from any illness nor
was there signs of being
attacked by other chimps
or of being bitten by
a snake. We came to
believe that she might
have fallen off from
a tree as branches were
wet from the rain and
could be slippery...
But how cruel a fate
could be.
Pinkie has touched
many people's heart.
She will always be remembered
and missed by the staff
and chimps of Tacugama,
her many fans around
the world and Pieh,
her best pal.
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