Thousands of berry-like objects washing ashore around Myrtle Beach. What are they?
.jpeg "Sargassum is a type of algae that grows in large “mats” offshore, providing habitat for sea turtles and other marine creatures. Its small, round air bladders are what keep it afloat, but sometimes storms and currents can break them off. July 15, 2025.")
Visitors strolling the sand in the Myrtle Beach area lately have likely encountered small, translucent balls scattered throughout the sea foam.
The orbs, which often appear tan or orange in color, are often mistaken for aquatic berries, fish eggs or even salps, a kind of zooplankton that looks like clear blobs of jelly.
Despite their strange appearance, the balls are actually part of a rather common type of algae: sargassum.
What is sargassum?
Sargassum is a type of algae that grows in large “mats” offshore, according to South Carolina Department of Natural Resources spokesperson Erin Weeks. These often enormous mats of growth provide important habitat for aquatic creatures like sea turtles, among others.
The berry-like objects visitors are encountering on Grand Strand shores are just a small part of the algae’s structure, carrying out an essential function.
“Sargassum floats using tons of tiny air bladders, which can break off and get pushed ashore by storms and strong currents,” Weeks said in an email to The Sun News.
When the air bladders are still attached to strands of sargassum, they look a bit more like what viewers might recognize as an aquatic plant.
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Weeks said that the air bladders have been reported on beaches throughout North Carolina as well.
It is possible for sargassum to impact human health, as mats of it can harbor organisms that cause skin irritation, and it releases strong-smelling hydrogen sulfide gas and ammonia while decomposing, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. However, human health impacts from sargassum are usually only seen during “inundation events,” when large rafts of sargassum are pushed near shore.
The small amounts of sargassum being seen in the Grand Strand are unlikely to have such effects.
Is this normal?
Sargassum doesn’t grow very close to shore. In fact, it has historically originated in the Sargasso Sea, in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean, Weeks explained.
Weeks added that it’s hard to say why so many of the algae’s air bladders are washing up on South Carolina beaches right now, but that it is typical for sargassum to have “blooms” during the summer months.
In some areas where the algae grows closer to shore, like the Caribbean, Weeks said the blooms can become problematic. In South Carolina though, she said the air bladders can be pushed toward the coast by strong offshore storms or currents.
Sargassum has been known to wash ashore in large amounts in Florida, Texas and the Caribbean, but each year, South Carolina is spared from dramatic inundation. Wind patterns, nutrient density and warmer temperatures due to climate change can all be factors in the amount of sargassum that blooms and washes up.
South Carolina is too far away from the Gulf Stream that pushes sargassum up from the Caribbean, The Sun News previously reported.
Currents can change though, especially when large storms are brewing off the coast, which can push more of the algae onto South Carolina beaches.
This story was originally published July 16, 2025 at 2:35 PM.
