For more than a week straight, photographers, scientists and adventurers have captured dazzling images of an electric blue light emitted at night by Southern California’s waves.
The appearance of bioluminescence, created when a type of algae is agitated, is difficult to predict, but over the past nine days, Californians have shared videos and photos of the phenomenon from San Diego to Point Mugu and several others intermediate places.
On Monday evening, photographer Patrick Coyne headed to Marina del Rey, where he saw the brightest bioluminescent waters he’s ever experienced — quite a feat considering he’s been chasing neon blue waves since 2018.
“Last night the light was so incredibly bright that my iPhone was picking it up more than ever,” said Coyne, 30. He said he had been to area beaches eight of the last nine nights, documenting waves breaking neon blue, surfers lit up along the swells and the water glowing red as he waded along the shore.
Coyne has amassed a large following online thanks to his striking photos and videos, but also his willingness – and dedication – to find and share when and where bioluminescence light shows are on display. Once he posts the location where he spotted the electrifying waves, dozens of followers soon join him there, he said.
“I like to show people this phenomenon. … It’s like magic,” he said.
And for those who have yet to see the bright blue ocean, it may not be too late.
“We really don’t know; Mother Nature kind of decides when it happens and when it doesn’t happen,” said Coyne, who estimates he has observed probably 300 events in the last six years.
But it has also been removed several times.
“I went hundreds and hundreds of times looking for him,” he said. But he feels good about Tuesday night’s chances.
“If I guessed, I think it would be there tonight – but I’ve been burned in the past,” he said. “It’s so random.”
Given the intensity of the glow he saw Monday evening and the long sequence already recorded, he expects there are still enough microscopic algae – called dinoflagellates – that emit the bioluminescent glow somewhere along the southern California coast. During the day, these dinoflagellates cast a rusty hue on the ocean — often called “red tide” — which sky cameras captured around the Santa Monica Pier on Tuesday. This strong performance also bodes well for more nights with bioluminescence.
But red tides — and the coordination of bioluminescence — are unpredictable and quite fickle, according to the Scripps Institution of Oceanography at UC San Diego. They can last one or more days, and their range can extend over hundreds of kilometers or be more localized.
“Previous events lasted between a week and a month or more,” according to the Scripps researchers. “There is no way to predict how long they will last.”
In 2020, the region experienced a particularly long show period over several weeks. We do not yet know how long this will last.
“We’ve had dinoflagellate blooms along the California coast recently,” said Clarissa Anderson, a biological oceanographer at Scripps and director of the Southern California Coastal Ocean Observing Systemsaid last week. “I see a lot of Lingulodinium polyhedra And Tripos fork these days – both are producers of the bioluminescent light shows we see.
Last week, a UC San Diego photographer captured dolphins gliding through bright blue waters.
Dinoflagellates called Lingulodinium polyhedra use bioluminescence to avoid predators, either by scaring away hungry sea creatures or by drawing attention to their location, which attracts predators, experts said.
Researchers are still working to better understand how these algal blooms affect ocean life and humans. There are no public health warnings associated with these events, but some people have reported health effects related to red tide.
