Sea Gooseberries

Emma Chaplin
, 05 June 2023
Sea Gooseberries
Sea Gooseberry © Mike Murphy

We've been hearing a lot of recent reports of sightings of beautiful little things that look a bit like sweeties, which are actually called Sea Gooseberries. 

They have most likely ended up on the beaches due to recent strong winds. They tend to be in high abundance at this time of year in any case due to the increased amount of plankton (their main food source) in surface water in the spring and summer, when the days get longer and the sun is higher in the sky. There’s been a lot of sunshine in recent weeks which has probably increased this even more.

Sea Gooseberries on shingle beach
Sea Gooseberries © Mike Murphy

But what are they? Well, Dr Baxter from Cumbria Wildlife Trust tells us: they are jelly-like but they are not true jellyfish, so the good news is they don't sting. Sea Gooseberries are, however, voracious predators. They can eat up to 10 times their own body-weight a day. And they are happy to munch on each other. They grow up to about 2.5cm long. Although they have two long, feathery tentacles, they actually use a sticky substance to catch their prey.

You might want to put them back in the sea if you see them washed up.

Leave a comment

Comments

  • Mike Jackson:

    A very interesting article thank you.

    30 Jun 2023 06:08:00

  • Pete Ayles:

    There are thousands of these on the waters edge this morning at Sandwich Bay

    23 May 2024 10:26:00

  • Denise Bowden:

    Loads of all sizes along Bexhill beach this morning.

    11 Jun 2024 15:42:00

  • Caroline Bartlett:

    Loads of them washed up on weston super mare beach this morning. Some even had sea fleas inside them… wow never new they existed. Thanks for the info

    28 Apr 2025 06:36:00

  • Paul Dalling:

    I’ve recently fished these beautiful creatures out
    Of Swansea South Wales 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿
    They were in my landing net
    Unfortunately it was daytime
    I didn’t witness there night beauty
    I returned them straight away

    23 Jun 2026 19:30:00

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