Photographer Patrick Coyne has filmed dolphins frolicking in water glowing with bioluminescence, a dog romping around in the electric blue waves and even did himself doing a cannonball to send a splash of the fluorescent water shooting into the sky.
The Torrance photographer documented something new in the Newport Harbor this week: A cute little duck with its webbed feet lighting up an electric blue color as it swam up to Coyne and his girlfriend in the dark of night.
Red tide, which can be accompanied by bioluminescence at night, has been spotted along the Southern California coastline in recent weeks, but has been spotty to see, Coyne said. He spotted it in Oxnard a few days ago and waited until midnight in the Newport Harbor on Tuesday, April 25, to see the water glow.
The Newport Beach light show was the brightest Coyne said he’s seen so far this year. Coyne and a handful of other dedicated photographers have been chasing glowing waves since they first started showing up regularly in 2020.
Last year, he documented bioluminescence events at least 50 times from Malubu to San Clemente, a feat that takes patience and dedication as it sometimes doesn’t show up until the early morning hours.
Sometimes, the sea stays pitch dark, and the outing is a bust. Other nights, the waves lighten and take on a glowing hue, giving hope there will be a performance put on by Mother Nature.
“Best advice I can give is to check beaches as often as you can and in areas that are super dark,” he said. “Light pollution from the city makes it a bit challenging to see bio if it’s not crazy bright.”
In Newport Harbor, the calmer the better. When it’s windy, it doesn’t seem to show as strong, he said.
During this week’s outing, Coyne and his girlfriend were hanging out on a dock waiting for the water to light up when they saw the duck swimming toward them.
“We started calling it over, joking to see if it would come over and it did,” Coyne said….
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