Looking for a way to select distinct feature from an object and count them. They're not individual contours as they are connected.

I am looking to count the number of little circles or ovals on the lines. I am relatively new to opencv so I am open to any suggestions that get me started thank you. This is the image. [C:\fakepath\ROOT003 - 1200 DPI.jpg](/upfiles/14993613947488789.jpg)