A marine worm (Palolo viridis) found in Pacific coral reefs that emerges from the reef in massive synchronized swarms during spawning, observed as a spectacular natural phenomenon.
The name comes from the local Samoan language word for this worm. The term entered English through naturalists documenting Pacific island phenomena in the 19th century.
Balolo is nature's strangest calendar—locals in Samoa and other Pacific islands time their harvests by the balolo rising, and when millions emerge at once to spawn, it's one of the most mind-bending synchronized events in nature!
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