Jelly-like creatures create ‘blue tide’ on Oregon coast

PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) – The Oregon coast is once again seeing a “blue tide” of creatures called velella velella , which often wash shore this time of year.

The Oregonian/OregonLive reports the Oregon Coast Aquarium announced Friday that the jelly-like organisms had arrived on Oregon beaches, in some places covering the sand in a carpet of blueish purple.

Aquarium officials say visitors should expect to see them for the next few weeks, though they’ll soon begin to decay and turn translucent, creating a foul smell on the beach.

The jelly-like organisms use clear, triangular sails to travel across the surface of the ocean, drifting where the breeze takes them.

Velella velella were originally classified as a jelly, but researchers have since recognized the creature as a unique species of hydrozoan, a class of predatory salt water animals.

More information: https://aquarium.org/velella-velella/