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Thursday, April 23, 2015

a reminder from the sea

Living at the ocean you get used to mother nature at her finest. From raging storms, beautiful sunsets, finding treasure and witnessing the cycle of life- you learn that the ocean is powerful, ever changing and full of mystery. A couple of weeks ago we woke up to the beaches covered with thousands of Vellela vellela- a type of jellyfish (often referred to as by-the-wind- sailors). These small animals float on top of the surface of the open ocean and ride the currents and wind searching for food. They use their triangular shaped sails to travel but are at the mercy of  wind and can wash ashore by the thousands when there is a big storm or heavy westerly winds.

I spent the day around the area photographing the Vellela vellela- something about this phenomenon was so inspiring, somber but inspiring. The shades of blue, the shapes, the pattern and sheer number covering the sand was truly a sight to behold and something I was compelled to capture. By the afternoon, as the tide came in, most of jellies were gone. Leave it to the ocean to remind me (again and again) how miraculous, sad and beautiful life can be all at once. 


40 comments:

  1. Absolute magnificent photos! Thank you! :-)

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  2. Wow! The sheer number of those is insane!!! We have a similar jelly here, longer tentacles, but the same little sail and color. We sometimes gets a big bunch that was ashore, but never that many!!!

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  3. OMG. Fantastic photos, especially that one of the loaded beach and cloudy sky! Wow. Having grown up with the Lake Huron shore, this is one of my favorite quotes:

    "Old Indefatigable, time's right hand man, the sea" from William Ernest Henley

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  4. OMG this is so amazing...so fantastic...I want to see them in real too! How beautiful!!!!!
    Oh I am totally thrilled...like you can see... ;)

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  5. These photos are amazing! I have never seen anything like it. You described the mood perfectly. I have to make over to see the pacific ocean for sure!

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  6. Lovely photos. I had to look up the collective noun for these little ones; they are called a smack of jellyfish. Glad to know they returned to the sea.

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  7. This is so fascinating and amazing! I've never seen anything like your photos of all of them on the beach. Thanks for sharing!

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  8. What beautiful creatures. How cool that you were able to get such up-close shots. I'm glad they made it back into the ocean where they belong :)

    Brooke | brookewrote

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  9. Stunning!!!
    Thx for sharing, Alisa!

    Greetz from Germany,
    Sanni (c:

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  10. Wow, look at all those - incredible. Thank you for posting the pictures - I see the 'sails' part on the beach down in Bandon but had no clue what they were, it almost looked like some sort of manmade trash - I've never seen it attached to the jelly fish. Now I know what they are!

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  11. Wow. Nature really is fascinating. I enjoyed reading more about this diaphanous and magical being. The article that you linked to described just this phenomenon...masses ending up on the beach. It didn't say how long they can survive not being in water though. I can't imagine it would be very long though, :(

    On a brighter note, I do so love Cannon Beach! Thanks for taking me to my happy place.

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  12. Oh my goodness this is just incredible and amazing and beautiful and somewhat sad ... the power of nature can never be taken for granted. Fantastic photos Alisa!

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  13. I live in Santa Cruz and see these jelly fish now and then. I love the color and shape of them.
    It's amazing to see so many beached.

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  14. I live in Santa Cruz and see these jelly fish now and then. I love the color and shape of them.
    It's amazing to see so many beached.

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  15. Oh My God, it's truly amazing!
    I love Velella, but in your photo they look absolutely great!

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  16. livethegoldenrule5:12 PM

    Wow! I had no idea such things existed. Great pictures, thank you for sharing. :D

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  17. beautiful captures.. here in FL we get Jellies washing up all the time too.. but not in that number.. wow... such a sight.

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  18. beautiful captures.. here in FL we get Jellies washing up all the time too.. but not in that number.. wow... such a sight.

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  19. Wow! Fantastic photos and so so many of them washed up.

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  20. When I saw the first picture I thought it would be plastic. Wow, amazing. Never saw so many. Such a cool place you live!

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  21. Hello Alisa - these photos are really impressive... I have never seen something before - thanks for sharing.

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  22. Amazing! breathtaking :)

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  23. I have been following your blog for about 3 years now. Each morning - except weekends of course - I make a cup of tea, open up my email and so look forward to what you will be sharing with me that day. I am always impressed with your creativity and variety of topics. I guess by the looks of the other comments you have a lot of folks who feel the same as me. Well, today my dear, you exceeded even the normal Alisa high marks. The photos were amazing (I did miss little Lucy though) and the story was most fascinating. I live in Oregon and visit the sea often and knew not about these little sea friends. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.

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    Replies
    1. I share your comment. Have a nice weekend.

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  24. Dear Alisa your photos are so awesome. Many thanks and have a nice weekend.

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  25. I live in the middle of the United States and have only seen the ocean a handful of times. These pictures almost made me tear up. I'm not sure why other that it's the magnificence of God's creation. I can't imagine the spiritual experience it must have been for you. Thank you for sharing these photos. (And, all of your talent!)

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  26. I sat with my mouth wide open, marveling at the beauty of these creatures and the sheer number of them. Thank you for sharing this with us. Truly a magnificent sight. If they did not return to the sea alive, their lives were not in vain, according to the numerous comments above. They certainly have left their mark in our minds and even hearts.

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  27. You take some of the most breathtaking scenic pictures Its amazing What a wonderful place to live

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  28. Anonymous2:35 AM

    What an amazing pictures!! Thank you for that, just fabulous!!

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  29. So that's what they are. I've seen them before at the Oregon Coast, but they never looked as interesting as they do in your photos!

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  30. Wow! I've never seen such a thing, and in such numbers! Spectacular!

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  31. these are sooo cool!! thank you for this.. we saw some of these at the Gulf beach this spring and were curious... this is just amazing to see them in their "flock"! :D xoxo

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  32. beautiful and stunning to see-i was stung by jellyfish-not this kind-as a kid so have a healthy aversion to them :)

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  33. sangat bermanfaat....mampir balik ya gan, ada info terbaru nih klik...Jelly Gamat

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  34. Every time I look at your photographs, it makes me want to visit the Oregon coast so bad! These are just beautiful!

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