Scientists confirm a microscopic cell is behind the phenomenon that turned the west coast sea turquoise.
Turquoise waters photographed from the ferry crossing from Ardrossan to Arran on 21 June A microscopic sea algae is behind a phenomenon that turned Scotland's water a beautiful Mediterranean blue, scientists have confirmed.
The spherical cell is covered in chalk plates that reflect the sunlight just below the surface of the water.on Scotland's west coast last month. A water sample was then taken by a Field Studies Council centre at Millport on the Isle of Cumbrae on 24 June.Dr Eileen Bresnan identified the coccolithophore under an electron microscope It was sent to the University of Aberdeen, where Dr Eileen Bresnan identified the coccolithophore using an electron microscope.The algae has been living in large numbers in the upper layer of the sea around Ayrshire. Dr Paul Tett, from the Scottish Association for Marine Science , said the phenomenon had not been seen in Scotland since the 1980s.