Olivia Berry and her friend Hayley Cox were paddleboarding at sunset in front of Scarborough, Moreton Bay, southeast Queensland, when they noticed an unusual “neon blue” ripple in the water.
Key points:
- Bioluminescence is caused by the marine species Noctiluca scintillans
- When disturbed, it causes a “chemical reaction” and emits light
- Bioluminescence is safe for humans to swim, but could cause damage to other marine life
“We were coming back when sunset fell,” Ms. Berry said.
“We noticed that the lights were starting to shine and lit up more and more as the sun set.
“It was very bright, almost like a bright neon blue, and it rippled with the water.”
The 24-year-old has lived in the area for more than 18 years, but had not seen the phenomenon before in the Moreton Bay region.
“It’s pretty weird from what I understand,” Ms. Berry said.
“I think a combination of the right wind and tide and also the conditions in the water.”
Olivia Berry paddles through bioluminescence on Queens Beach in Moreton Bay, near Brisbane. (Supplied by: Hayley Cox)
Marine ecologist Kylie Pitt said the iridescent blue phenomenon was called bioluminescence, caused by the marine zooplankton species Noctiluca scintillans.
“When [the plankton’s] Food is really plentiful, that means it can really grow and reproduce, and it can become plentiful, ”he said.
“When it forms these dense abundances, it can form these bioluminescent screens.”
He said that when he got upset, he caused a “chemical reaction” and emitted light.
Professor Pitt said the blooms used to be short-lived and only lasted a few days.
Resident Denise Cooper’s dogs created large splashes of fluorescent blue water while playing at Queens Beach North in Redcliffe on Wednesday evening.
Mrs. Cooper was taking her dogs on her usual walk when she came across bioluminescence.
Mrs. Cooper’s dog played bioluminescence on Queens Beach. (Provided by: Denise Cooper)
Phenomenon now more common in the south such as climate change
Fisherman Shane Roberts has been in the water in the area for more than 40 years and said the phenomena occurred at least every year in Moreton Bay.
“We don’t see it very close to the shore in the same bay,” he said.
“In the bay, it’s a little further from land, so unless you’re on a boat, you really don’t see it that much from land.”
He said the “glow of the sea” lit the back of his boat “like a great flame” on his last adventure while he was in the eastern part of the bay Wednesday night.
“It’s magical,” Mr. Roberts said.
Mr Robert said bioluminescence illuminated the back of his ship on Wednesday night. (Provided by: Shane Roberts)
He said another fisherman reported sightings in April, but said “it wasn’t as thick, nor as bright and shiny” as this week.
Professor Pitt said it was a known phenomenon, but that it was only occasionally seen in large flowers in the Moreton Bay region.
He said bioluminescence was very common in the coastal waters of New South Wales and had only recently become commonplace in Tasmania.
“It is now very common in Tasmania and we think it may be a consequence of climate change,” he said.
Professor Pitt said there was a growing concern for blooms to occur more regularly.
“Historically they haven’t been found as far south, but now they’re down there very often,” he said.
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But Professor Pitt said seeing flowers was not necessarily a direct indication of a problem, as there could be multiple reasons for the high levels of nutrients in the water.
“One is a completely natural phenomenon, which is a springing of deep water from the shore,” he said.
“The other way you can increase nutrients is through human influence.
“But probably the increase we are seeing in many parts of the world could reflect the human contribution to nutrients in our coastal waterways.”
Is it safe to swim in it?
Professor Pitt said bioluminescence was safe for humans.
“I’ve swum around flowers before, and it’s a lot of fun,” he said.
Roberts said the best time to see it was when the water was “very glazed and calm.”
“If you have some water in your hands and throw it in the water, it will actually look like fireworks,” Roberts said.
However, Professor Pitt warned that the consequences could cause damage to marine life.
“When they’re really highly concentrated and when they all die at once, their decomposition absorbs a lot of oxygen into the water column,” he said.
“Sometimes this loss of oxygen can be harmful and cause the animals around you to die.
“Thus, from time to time, they are associated with the death of fish and the death of other organisms in the marine environment.”
Posted 17 hours 17 hours ago Friday, 24 June 2022 at 21:11, updated 16 hours, 16 hours ago, Friday, 24 June 2022 at 22:11