Amazing... this morning I found a new critter on the beach. Well, actually hundreds of new critters. I have never seen anything like this little blue thing before. When I saw the first one my thoughts were that it was something manmade, then I saw a second, and a third and then I realized the beach was littered with hundreds of these little things.
After prodding one with the leg of my sunglasses, I determined that the center had the consistency of a jellyfish. It was less than a quarter inch thick and about as big as a silver dollar. The blue fringe was pretty but reminiscent of the tentacles of a Portuguese man of war so I decided against touching it. However, I still didn't know what these little round blue things were.
When I got home and looked it up, I saw that they were called Blue Buttons. Well of course, that's exactly what they looked like, what a great name. They are not real jellyfish but like the Portuguese man of war they are a hydroid. The blue fringe which gathers its food does not sting but can cause skin irritation. Blue Buttons just float with the ocean currents and occasionally get washed ashore.
In keeping with the theme of this blog — finding things each day to be grateful for — I'm grateful that there are still new little miracles for me to find every day. Especially ones so appropriately named. I'm also grateful that I was not swimming in the ocean when these little critters were swept ashore.
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