Hundreds of the tiny creatures washed up on the beach in Wales, although typically they are seen in winter
Very little is known about the mysterious creature(Image: Kev Wardlaw)
Hundreds of tiny seas creatures have been spotted on a beach in Wales that look like “something from space”. Whilst visiting a beach at Criccieth on Monday, July 6 beachgoers found a colony of the small blue marine animal that is often mistaken for a jellyfish but is in fact a by-the-wind-sailor.
Very little is known about the mysterious creature scientifically known as velella velella but they can be commonly found floating on the surface of the water however they are often found in the months from September to March.
Only growing up to a maximum of 10cm in length the creature has been labelled as an “incredibly strange and beautiful species” by the Wildlife Trust. For the biggest stories in Wales first sign up to our daily newsletter here
(Image: Kev Wardlaw)
They are similar to the Portuguese Man O’War, a poisonous fish found in Wales, as they are made up of a colony of tiny individual animals.
Whilst not a “true jellyfish” the by-the-wind-sailor uses it stinging tentacles to capture prey as it sails along the surface of the water.
They are often found washed up in their hundreds, or sometimes even thousands, after stormy weather due to the harsh winds during the winter.
Hundreds of the tiny creatures washed on the Welsh coast (Image: Kev Wardlaw)
The Wildlife Trust describes the animals as: “A deep bluey purple oval disc, known as a float. A thin, semi-circular fin (sail) attaches diagonally across the top of the float and tiny short tentacles hang down from the float into the water below.”
Finding the tiny creatures washed up in Wales, Kev Wardlaw said: “Very small the biggest I saw was only a couple of inches. I’ve never seen one before, now I’ve seen hundreds!”