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Project Noah Nature School
Chlamydomonas nivalis
At first I thought we had happened upon a wolf kill, with blood trails everywhere. Later, after doing research, I found out it was actually a type of algae that when compressed turns a bright red! Obviously one of its nicknames is "Blood Snow"
This type of snow is common during the summer in alpine and coastal polar regions worldwide. Here, at altitudes of 10,000 to 12,000 feet
Watermelon snow, also called snow algae, red snow, or blood snow, is Chlamydomonas nivalis, a species of green algae containing a secondary red carotenoid pigment (astaxanthin) in addition to chlorophyll. Unlike most species of fresh-water algae, it is cryophilic (cold-loving) and thrives in freezing water. It's not usually as red as it looks, my camera upped the contrast (I think). It is a more pinkish-red
Spotted on Oct 22, 2013
Submitted on Oct 22, 2013
12 Comments
Now you will know if you are just finding watermelon snow or actual blood!
Really interesting !! Thanks for sharing !
Very interesting! Never heard about this before. Thank you for sharing!
What a cool find, thanks for sharing!
Thanks Mcaul
That is so cool! :D
The compressed algae is a red color but it is layered under sheets of ice and snow. It is usually found in terrain higher than 8,000ft in Washington State where snow is usually found year round. So, the red looks pink under the layers of snow. My camera did make it much more red then it looked in person.
Is the difference that it is more pink than red? Is it below the surface, so it doesn't look like spilled blood?
Lauren, I can tell you that if you do not know what watermelon snow is, it can be very nerve racking spending a few nights in the woods...At least, now I know the difference!
Really interesting! I had never heard of this before.
I had a picture of the slopes and there were trails lading away from a big red spot! Most likely it was a tent and the people who walked away that compacted the snow making it look like a wolf feast! Haha
How interesting! It really does look like a wolf kill