"When the phytoplankton are agitated by waves or other movement in the water, they emit a dazzling neon blue glow at night." Dinoflagellates use #bioluminescence as a predator avoidance behavior.

Waves light up blue in Morro Bay early Saturday, Sept. 23, 2023, thanks to tiny, single-celled creatures called bioluminescent dinoflagellates that produce bursts of light when disturbed.

Dinoflagellates are single-celled protists that live in algal ... “I was out on a cruise and the water was this blue-green glow because there were waves,” Dortch says. “And also the Northern Lights ...

When agitated—be it by a wave, a swimming animal, or even a human hand—dinoflagellates emit a brief flash of blue or green light. This ability may serve as a defense mechanism, startling ...

With each stroke you can spot individual droplets of water dripping blue from your paddle and ... What we do know, she says, is that bioluminescent dinoflagellates can be found in oceans and ...

The iridescent blue is caused by a planktonic organism — dinoflagellates — that are invisible to the eye, said David Caron, a professor of biological sciences at the University of Southern ...

Dinoflagellates produce their blue light using a luciferin-luciferase reaction, which is related to the chlorophyll chemical found in plants. The chemical reaction occurs between the luciferase ...

Just off San Diego's shore, single-celled algae called dinoflagellates start to reproduce ... the algae multiply and the coastal waters glow blue. As the sun sinks low in the west, other lights ...

This beautiful blue light is caused by millions of tiny bioluminescent plankton called dinoflagellates. But how do these minuscule organisms produce such a dazzling display? Keep reading for the facts ...

Tiny plankton called dinoflagellates flash neon blue when disturbed. It’s one of the brightest bioluminescent spots on Earth, but you’ll need a guide, and no swimming is allowed. These glow ...

At night, the waters emit a blue glow from organisms called dinoflagellates that live in the waters and light up when disturbed by boats, paddles or hands dipped in the water. Hundreds of ...