Victorian fisherman Cody Stylianou had a surprising encounter during his first trout fishing trip of the season. In a hidden Gippsland river, he saw a pink platypus swimming near the surface. "The bill and feet are super obviously pink," he said. Stylianou nicknamed the animal "Pinky" and watched it for 15 minutes as it fed. He believes it might be the same platypus he saw years ago, only bigger now. Stylianou keeps the fishing spot secret to protect the rare creature. Online, many guessed it was an albino platypus, but Jeff Williams, director of the Australian Platypus Conservancy, clarified it is just a lighter color. "Platypus do vary a lot in colour," Williams explained. "This one’s at the extreme end of the light ones. It’s not one that we consider should be added to the list of albino and leucistic ones." He compared it to human differences in hair or skin pigment, calling the sighting "unusual but not exceptional." Williams added, "It’s cute, but it’s not a breakthrough." The platypus is listed as near-threatened by the International Union for Conservation of Nature. Victorian platypus populations declined significantly due to river changes and habitat loss from European settlement. Williams said, "We messed up pretty much the flow of every river we’ve got. We cleared native vegetation along most of our waterways." Thanks to replanting and better environmental care, populations are beginning to recover, with more sightings reported recently. "We can’t be complacent," Williams warned, but confirmed the current trend is hopeful for the platypus future.