Every now and then, we’ll get a proliferation of orange-colored something or other in the ocean. It can start on just the edges of shore and by the next day you’ll see massive areas of it around Fishing Bay right off Eastsound, as though an accidental spillage of sludge from an orange sherbet factory occurred. Then a day or two later, it will be gone again.
It looks pretty alarming but from what I’ve gathered online, it’s a harmless, nontoxic phytoplankton called Noctiluca.
I encountered it while paddling over the 4th of July weekend and made a little photosession of it, probably more photos than you’ve ever cared to see…
