Udupi: Radiant blue colour shimmered on the waves gently crashing down on the Padukere shore, abutting Malpe, late on Thursday. While for the uninformed, it appeared a wonder of nature, it was not the case for septuagenarian retired engineer Arun Prabhu. Aware of the occurrence of this natural phenomenon known as bioluminescence, Prabhu with his son and grandchildren in tow, descended on Padukere around 11pm to capture this spectacle.
Prabhu, a nature lover and wildlife photographer, following a lead given by Mohith Shenoy and Abhishek Mayya, captured the day’s occurrence on his camera. “It is usual for the sea to have a greenish glow when bioluminescence occurs,” Prabhu told TOI. Bioluminescence is light emitted by living things or algae through chemical reactions in their bodies. It could also be the ghostly glow of bacteria on decaying meat or fish, Prabhu added.
Concurring with Prabhu, Sudesh Shetty, proprietor, Mantra Tourism Development Company, that manages Malpe Beach, said there was a similar report of bioluminescence at Mattu Beach, some 6 km away from Padukere, last year. “The phenomenon, though natural, is something one has to wait for, and is a treat to watch when it occurs,” Shetty said. Incidentally, Prabhu, who reached Padukere around 7.30pm a couple of days ago, missed the phenomenon.
Senthil Vel A, dean, College of Fisheries, Mangaluru, told TOI that there was a report of it at Surathkal Beach last month, where the colour of the sea had turned green. “It could be due to higher organic material load in the coastal water. This can sometimes prove harmful to fishes, as the oxygen level dips, and results in fishes getting killed,” Senthil said. “We will get this investigated by the department of aquatic environment management division,’‘ he said.
There could be any number of reasons for bioluminescence, including high amount of discharge of sewage into the sea, and variation in temperature due to global warming. The exact reason will be known once the samples are tested, he said. Bioluminescence occurs widely in marine vertebrates or invertebrates, as well as in some fungi and microorganisms, including some bioluminescent bacteria, and terrestrial arthropods such as fireflies.