What are those odd-looking sea creatures washing by the thousands at the beach?

Beachgoers out enjoying the balmy weather this weekend across Southern California came across a curious sight – thousands of shriveled jellyfish-looking sea creatures washed up on the shoreline.

Blue beauties in the water, their scientific name is  Velella velella and they are a tropical species at the mercy of the winds and currents that push them from warmer waters, earning them the nickname by-the-wind sailors.

Naturalist, boaters, surfers and swimmers out in the ocean have been...