Velella velella (Linnaeus, 1758)

A third kind of floating siphonophore occasionally seen washed in on windward beachs is Velella velella, sometime called a by-the-wind sailor. It has a small flat disk shaped body with an erect flap on top that sticks up and acts as a sail. We currently have no photos of the living animal from the Marshalls, but specimens I saw washed ashore in Hawaii measured about 15mm. Larger specimens such as the one figured below occasionally wash ashore in the Santa Barbara area of California, where this photo was taken.

Created 20 October 2015
Updated 5 October 2024

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