Photograph by Doug Perrine, Alamy
A little bit of magic in the Maldives. I’ve heard stories of these mystical blue lights dancing around and gently lighting up the shores of Vaadhoo Island in the Maldives. Since recent shots of the phenomenon has graced news pages I've been sent a number of messages along the lines of ‘You need to see this while you’re living there!' At a glance it almost seems too cool to be true. Glow in the dark waves? Speckled dancing lights comparable to tiny blue fairies swimming along the shores of paradise? Surely it’s either a hoax or an incredibly rare occurrence that you’ll probably never get to see. These stories are no hoax nor are the photos a display of some serious editing skills. With all the recent hype and as I investigated further, seeing this phenomenon quickly became number one on my Maldivian bucket list of things to do and see while living here.
So what are they?
The blue lights are actually tiny marine microbes called phytoplankton. Not all but many of these plankton are known to be bioluminescent and give off the mesmerizing blue glow pictured above. On calm nights when the plankton are washed up onto shore they can be seen glowing bright in all their glory. It is said they are easier to spot during a full moon, throughout certain seasons or only on particular islands and only in the Maldives. I’d like to bust that myth. Not only can I find no evidence to support these claims though when asking a local to the Maldives I have been told they can regularly be seen at shore and that there doesn’t seem to be any real pattern to their presence other than a clear sky and fairly calm waters. Much like seeing the Northern Lights (another bucket list worthy item I was lucky to tick off while in Iceland) you either get lucky, or you don’t.
Let me paint a picture for you.
You make your way down the jetty completely in awe of the natural wonderland around you. With an endless dome above speckled with stars you watch as they gently glisten and shine dancing not just in the sky but as reflections amongst the calm gentle rock of the ocean below. You make it to the end and turn back swiftly glancing over to shore. Your jaw drops, you stand there staring in wonder at hundreds of tiny blue specks lining the beach like waves of dancing fireflies swimming and prancing within the water. Completely melting from the inside out you sit in the darkness being absorbed by the silence as you try to take in and capture the essence of what is currently before your eyes. Magic.
This is how I had hoped seeing this phenomenon would pan out.
In reality though, here’s what happened: On the way home from work last night I decided to take a detour and walk the long way home. As I work nights I have missed the plankton each time someone’s spotted them so tonight I decided to walk there in the wee hours anyway with my fingers crossed. Smart move Ashlea, because there on one section of the beach I could just make out a light blue glow coming from a handful of specks as I approached. It was them! In honesty it wasn’t a great night to see them. I could probably count on my hands how many clusters I saw- not quite the thousands upon thousands I was expecting. The lack of numbers didn't at all deter from the epic shades of awesome before my eyes. Seeing what I did was still enough to make me giddy. That feeling that twists the desire to travel, one that can only be ignited by foreign or other-worldly experiences and the feeling that makes you want to both immediately leave & see the rest of the world while equally wanting to freeze in the moment and never let it end. They are magical, and something you really need to see to believe. They actually glow brighter when agitated so you can see them glitter as the waves roll over or in the sand from the footprints you leave with each step.
So where can you really see them?
Believe it or not there has been sightings of these or similar luminescent species all over the world and paying a pretty penny for a trip to the Maldives is not your only option. Some unexpected shores gracing that list? Belgium, India, United Kingdom, Thailand, Indonesia, Vietnam, America, The Caribbean and even back home in Australia!
Specific sightings in Australia: Gippsland Lakes, Cairns (Seen in 2008/2009) Jervis Bay NSW & as I understand a green variation has been seen at Batemans Bay.
Sightings in America: Manasquan Beach- New Jersey, San Diego, Leucadia- California, Everglades, Cortez- Florida.
For those who are now sporting a little bit of a lure for luminescence here’s a cool page on some other natural, weird and wonderful things that glow in the night.
The detour may well become my new route home.
For some magic off shore & in the city check out my guide here on the Island capital- Male.
Photograph by Russ Taylor
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
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