{"id":1426,"date":"2026-09-30T16:47:08","date_gmt":"2026-09-30T12:47:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/jigsawearth.com\/guides\/why-sand-comes-in-different-colours\/"},"modified":"2026-09-30T16:47:08","modified_gmt":"2026-09-30T12:47:08","slug":"why-sand-comes-in-different-colours","status":"publish","type":"guide","link":"https:\/\/jigsawearth.com\/es\/guides\/why-sand-comes-in-different-colours\/","title":{"rendered":"Negra, rosa, roja y blanca: por qu\u00e9 la arena de playa tiene distintos colores"},"content":{"rendered":"

When we picture a beach, most of us imagine golden sand. But travel a little and you will find beaches that are black as coal, soft pink, deep red or so white they hurt your eyes in the sun. The colour of sand tells the story of where it came from. Here is what gives the world’s beaches their colours, with puzzles of some of the most beautiful examples.<\/p>\n

Golden sand: pieces of old mountains<\/h2>\n

Most of the world’s sand, especially on continental coasts, is made mainly of quartz, one of the hardest and most common minerals in rocks such as granite. Over thousands of years, rivers and waves break down rocks into tiny grains and carry them to the sea. Traces of iron and other minerals give the grains their yellow, golden or brownish tones.<\/p>\n

Dazzling white sand: silica and coral<\/h2>\n

Some of the whitest sand on Earth is almost pure silica. Whitehaven Beach in Australia’s Whitsunday Islands is made of about 98 percent silica, so fine and pale that it stays cool underfoot even in the midday sun. At nearby Hill Inlet, the tide swirls it with turquoise water into ever-changing patterns.<\/p>\n

In the tropics, many white beaches have a very different origin: coral. Waves break up dead coral and shells, and a surprising amount of this sand comes from parrotfish. As they feed, they bite off pieces of coral, grind them with strong teeth in their throats and pass them out as fine white sand. A single large parrotfish can produce hundreds of kilograms of sand in a year.<\/p>\n

\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Hill\t\t\t\t\t\t
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Hill Inlet y la playa de Whitehaven, Whitsunday<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t

Australia<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Anse\t\t\t\t\t\t

\n\t\t\t\t

Anse Source d’Argent, La Digue<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t

Seychelles<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Agua\t\t\t\t\t\t

\n\t\t\t\t

Agua turquesa en la playa de Kailua, O\u02bbahu<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t

Estados Unidos<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t<\/div><\/div>\n

Black sand: volcanoes meet the sea<\/h2>\n

Black sand beaches are found on volcanic islands such as Hawaii, Iceland and Dominica. They form when hot lava flows into the ocean, cools suddenly and shatters into small pieces of dark volcanic glass and basalt, which the waves grind and wash ashore. Because this needs an active or recently active volcano, black sand beaches are often young, and some can disappear within decades if no new lava arrives.<\/p>\n

Black sand heats up quickly in the sun, which is one reason green sea turtles in Hawaii like to rest on it. On the rainy east coast of Maui and the black beaches of Dominica, the dark sand makes a striking contrast with bright green forest and white surf.<\/p>\n

\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Playa\t\t\t\t\t\t
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Playa de arena negra cerca de H\u0101na, Maui<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t

Estados Unidos<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Tortuga\t\t\t\t\t\t

\n\t\t\t\t

Tortuga verde en una playa de arena negra, Haw\u00e1i<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t

Estados Unidos<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Playa\t\t\t\t\t\t

\n\t\t\t\t

Playa de arena negra en Rosalie, Dominica<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t

Dominica<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t<\/div><\/div>\n

Red sand: rusted cinders<\/h2>\n

Red beaches are rare. Kaihalulu, the Red Sand Beach near H\u0101na on Maui, lies beside an old cinder cone rich in iron. As waves slowly wear away the cone, they carry its red cinders into the small cove below. The iron in them has oxidised over time, much like rust, giving the sand its deep red colour.<\/p>\n

Pink sand: tiny red sea creatures<\/h2>\n

The soft pink sand of Harbour Island in the Bahamas and some beaches in Bermuda gets its colour from foraminifera, microscopic sea creatures with bright red or pink shells. They live on the undersides of reefs, and when they die their shells are broken up by the waves and mixed with white coral sand, giving the beach a gentle rosy glow that is strongest at the water’s edge.<\/p>\n

\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Playa\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t

Playa de arena roja al amanecer, H\u0101na, Maui<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t

Estados Unidos<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Playa\t\t\t\t\t\t

\n\t\t\t\t

Playa de arena rosa, Harbour Island<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t

Bahamas<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t<\/div><\/div>\n

Green sand: a gemstone beach<\/h2>\n

Even rarer are green beaches. Papak\u014dlea Beach, at the southern tip of Hawaii’s Big Island, gets its olive-green colour from crystals of olivine, a mineral that forms in volcanic rock. Olivine is heavier than other volcanic grains, so the waves carry the lighter material away and leave the green crystals behind. When olivine is of gem quality, it is known as peridot.<\/p>\n

Take only photos<\/h2>\n

Rare coloured sands are easily lost. In many places, including Hawaii, it is against the law to take sand from the beach, and visitors are asked not to take even a small bottle as a souvenir. The best way to take a black, pink or red beach home is in a photo, or in a jigsaw puzzle.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

La arena no siempre es dorada. Descubre c\u00f3mo los volcanes, el coral, diminutos animales marinos e incluso los peces crean las playas negras, rosas, rojas y blanqu\u00edsimas del mundo.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":1341,"template":"","class_list":["post-1426","guide","type-guide","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/jigsawearth.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/guide\/1426","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/jigsawearth.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/guide"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/jigsawearth.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/guide"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jigsawearth.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1341"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/jigsawearth.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1426"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}