Jim Serpa was like a giddy school kid exploring Mother Nature’s classroom as he scanned the sand.
“There’s one … there’s another,” Serpa exclaimed as he walked along the damp high-tide line in north San Clemente on Monday, April 10.
Dotting the shore were hundreds of “by-the-wind sailors,” jelly-like creatures known for their beautiful blue hues that get pushed to Southern California from tropical waters by wind and ocean currents.
Thousands of the creatures were spotted Friday, April 7, about two miles from shore and by the weekend many had washed up at various beaches between the South Bay, Huntington Beach, Crystal Cove and San Clemente.
The creatures’ scientific name is Velella velellas, and they are distinguished by their “sails” on top, which also look a little like a mohawk. When they hit the shore, they start to die and dry out, turning clear, looking more like a piece of plastic than a sea creature. Though by-the-wind sailors look like jellyfish because of their gelatinous nature, they are not, and they don’t have the sting associated with jellies, though their tentacles on the bottom can irritate the skin.
Their appearance could be a sign of a changing weather pattern on the horizon – the onset of El Niño.
“Maybe, just maybe, they are forecasting for us,” said Serpa, who is a retired State Parks ranger.
Longtime Dana Wharf Whale Watching boat captain Todd Mansur said he has been watching the waters for signs of El Niño heading our way and if models are correct, there could be a drastic change on the horizon.
“Typically, it means we’re seeing a change,” Mansur said of the tropical species’ appearance in recent days. “This could be a sign there’s something subsurface we’re not seeing from our sea temp gauges and sticking our toes in the ocean to check the temperature, that might be showing signs of this change.”
Last time by-the-wind sailors were pushed to shore was the El Niño years of 2014…
Read the full article here
