{"id":83158,"date":"2025-04-11T20:05:03","date_gmt":"2025-04-11T20:05:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cred.ai\/news\/?p=83158"},"modified":"2025-04-16T20:17:50","modified_gmt":"2025-04-16T20:17:50","slug":"distant-gelatinous-kin-wash-up-on-south-carolina-shores","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cred.ai\/news\/2025\/04\/11\/distant-gelatinous-kin-wash-up-on-south-carolina-shores\/","title":{"rendered":"Distant Gelatinous Kin Wash Up on South Carolina Shores"},"content":{"rendered":"

Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, has recently seen its shoreline dotted with strange, clear blobs, sparking curiosity and confusion among beachgoers. While they resemble jellyfish, scientists say these gelatinous visitors are actually salps\u2014a harmless type of zooplankton, according to Vice<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The influx is likely due to strong coastal winds pushing the creatures ashore. Though alien-looking, salps play an important role in ocean ecosystems.<\/p>\n

\n

\u201cSalps actually, this will sound a little odd, they\u2019re our cousins. They are very simple members of the phylum chordata,\u201d Juliana Harding, a marine science professor at Coastal Carolina University, told The Sun News<\/i><\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

The Environmental Protection Agency<\/a> describes zooplankton as \u201cthe animals of the planktonic community.\u201d Salps, in particular, feed on bacteria, single-celled algae, and other microscopic organisms. They move by rhythmically pumping water through their transparent, barrel-shaped bodies\u2014absorbing nutrients and propelling themselves forward in the process.<\/p>\n

Scientifically, salps are chordates\u2014the same phylum as humans\u2014which makes them more closely related to us than jellyfish, despite their appearance. They also play a key role in the marine food web.<\/p>\n

\n

\u201cThey\u2019re important in the lower parts of food webs,\u201d Harding said. \u201cSometimes they\u2019re consumed by larger things. Other times, they simply process the food to make it available for other organisms in the food web.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Local residents and tourists can rest easy: salps are not dangerous. Unlike jellyfish, they don\u2019t sting and are safe to handle. Eventually, scientists say, the tide will carry them back out to sea.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, has recently seen its shoreline dotted with strange, clear blobs, sparking curiosity and confusion among beachgoers. While they resemble jellyfish, scientists say these gelatinous visitors are actually salps\u2014a harmless type of zooplankton, according to Vice. The influx is likely due to strong coastal winds pushing the creatures ashore. Though alien-looking, salps …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":14,"featured_media":83159,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[785],"tags":[114,162,1274,1275,1276,1277],"class_list":["post-83158","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-science","tag-news","tag-science","tag-myrtle-beach","tag-south-carolina","tag-salps","tag-zooplankton"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nDistant Gelatinous Kin Wash Up on South Carolina Shores - crednews<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/cred.ai\/news\/2025\/04\/11\/distant-gelatinous-kin-wash-up-on-south-carolina-shores\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Distant Gelatinous Kin Wash Up on South Carolina Shores\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, has recently seen its shoreline dotted with strange, clear blobs, sparking curiosity and confusion among beachgoers. While they resemble jellyfish, scientists say these gelatinous visitors are actually salps\u2014a harmless type of zooplankton, according to Vice. The influx is likely due to strong coastal winds pushing the creatures ashore. 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