Visitors strolling the sand in the Myrtle Beach area lately have likely encountered small, translucent balls scattered throughout the sea foam.
The orbs, which often appear tan or orange in color, are often mistaken for aquatic berries, fish eggs or even salps, a kind of zooplankton that looks like clear blobs of jelly.
Despite their strange appearance, the balls are actually part of a rather common type of algae: sargassum.
What is sargassum?
Sargassum is a type of algae that grows in large “mats” offshore, according to South Carolina Department of Natural Resources spokesperson Erin Weeks. These often enormous mats of growth provide important habitat for aquatic creatures like sea turtles, among others…