A bioluminescence lit the ocean a neon blue just off Dana Point’s harbor, a sight that caught boaters off guard Sunday, March 14, as they were out trying to catch a lobster dinner.
Pamela Evans and Steve Mikulak, of Newport Beach, were with another couple putting out lobster traps just after sunset when they noticed the ocean glowing bright.
Evans, who saw the rare sight last year, knew exactly what it was as the bright blue water churning behind the boat lit up.
“All of us were like, ‘Look at the water, it’s so bright,’” she recalled. “I looked behind and it was all blue.”
Bioluminescence can be tricky and unpredictable – so it’s unknown if it is going to stick around, like it did for about six weeks last year, the largest and strongest bloom seen off the coast in recent decades. Evans even paddleboarded in the neon blue water during last year’s appearance.
One clue on whether the ocean will have the bioluminescence is a rusty red hue during the day.
Currents and wave action can push it offshore or to different areas of the coast within hours.
Last year, it first showed up strongest in Newport Beach mid April before being spotted down in San Diego, then Huntington Beach, San Clemente and Dana Point, then later up the coast in Long Beach and Manhattan Beach.
The glowing water is actually caused by a plankton, which often grows after storm run off pollutants mix with nutrients and bloom.
Scientists at the Scripps Institution of Oceanography at UC San Diego dove into what causes the plankton to grow as the glowing waters last year made national headlines.
Bioluminescence expert Michael Latz, a scientist at Scripps, gave some info on the science of the phenom after last year’s spectacular showing.
“The red tide is due to aggregations of the dinoflagellate Lingulodinium polyedra, a species well known for its bioluminescent displays. Each microscopic cell contains some ‘sunscreen,’ giving it a reddish-brown color. On sunny days, the organisms swim toward the surface where they concentrate, resulting in the intensified coloration of the water – and the reason for the term ‘red tide.’ At night, when the phytoplankton are agitated by waves or other movement in the water, they emit a dazzling neon blue glow.”
For Evans, the sight brought beauty to an already adventurous outing out on the water.
“We were out on an adventure that was fun in itself, trying to get lobster,” she said. “We didn’t get any, but we did end up with a beautiful evening, having the bioluminescence around us lighting up our night.”
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