https://wildlife.blog/tags/by-the-wind-sailor/ Recent content in By-the-Wind Sailor on Wildlife.blog Hugo en-us https://wildlife.blog/posts/these-things-that-wash-up-on-shore-during-onshore/ https://wildlife.blog/posts/these-things-that-wash-up-on-shore-during-onshore/ <p>📍 San Diego</p> <hr> <p><strong>By-the-wind Sailor</strong> <em>(Velella velella)</em></p> <p>Not a jellyfish but a colonial hydrozoan, each Velella is a raft of specialized polyps topped by a chitinous sail that catches the wind.</p> <p>Mass strandings are common along San Diego beaches in spring and summer when persistent onshore winds push entire flotillas ashore.</p> <p><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Velella">Wikipedia</a> | <a href="https://www.inaturalist.org/taxa/117777-Velella-velella">iNaturalist</a></p>