Beaches are beautiful at any time of day, but the night can bring something extra special. Bioluminescent tides—which shine in the darkness—exist throughout the world. Sometimes these glowing waters seem like tiny twinkling stars suspended in the ocean. Other times they shine with extraordinary brightness.
This phosphorescence is often caused by algae suspended in the water that emits a glow whenever it is jostled either by the tide rolling in and out or by the motion of a boat, fish, or even a finger moving through the water. Sometimes the glow is made by bioluminescent organisms like firefly squid and ostracod crustaceans. In a light-polluted world, the beauty of the night can often be obscured by the glare of manmade light, but if you look closely, you might see the quiet glow of bioluminescence.
Here are 7 places around the world where you can see the waters glow:
Jervis Bay (Australia)
Beyond a white sandy beach and crystal-clear water, Jervis Bay, on the south coast of New South Wales, has bright, beautiful presentations of bioluminescence. The dinoflagellate species Noctiluca scintillans, a widely occurring red tide organism, makes the sea sparkle in Jervis Bay.
The most radiant displays typically occur between May and August and are especially concentrated at night after a rainfall.
Vaadhoo Island, Maldives
Hordes of plankton cause the marine visual exhibition that has given this island global renown gathered along the shoreline. Ostracod crustaceans or seed shrimp, also bear responsibility by colliding into the sand.
The illumination that results is their reaction to aggravation or danger. You realise the light you see is the dying gasps of these organisms, stirring a profound sense of mortality.
Sometimes things do shine the brightest right before they burn out. But, such is the circle of life, ever mysterious and wondrous.
Torrey Pines State Beach, San Diego, California
Dinoflagellates, the uncanny organisms that create this light, have gravitated to the shores of San Diego, creating algal blooms, or red tides by day.
As night falls, the breaking of the waves along the coast aggravates these massive congregations of dinoflagellates, transforming the waves into beams of light that travel across the beach.
Keep a close tab on the scientific discussion surrounding this topic at this area to get the best sense of when to check it out.
The Blue Grotto (Malta)
Reachable only by a specially licensed boat, the Blue Grotto of Malta is said to be one of the most spectacular natural sights in the world.
These oceanic sea caverns on the south coast are surrounded by tall cliffs that are constantly pounded by waves, producing the phosphorescent glow for which they are known.
Blue Grotto is actually just one of six caves, all of which are popular tourist destinations.
Matsu Islands (Taiwan)
The aptly named “blue tears” of Taiwan’s Matsu Islands are caused by the dinoflagellate red Noctiluca scintillans. These sea sparkles are most visible after dark along the shores of the Matsu Islands.
Scientists in China have begun using satellites to track the harmful plankton, which has become more abundant. The scope of the algae bloom in the East China Sea includes coastal and offshore waters, and the algae survive in warmer waters better than previously believed.
Toyama Bay (Japan)
The glow at Toyama Bay occurs for a different reason. It comes not from phytoplankton but from a phosphorescent creature called the firefly squid, or Watasenia scintillans.
Every year from March to June, the bay and shoreline become inundated with millions of these three-inch squid, which come up from the depths of the ocean to breed. As they fill the waters and beaches, both fishermen and tourist operations spring into action.