What's up with all those jellyfish?

There seems to be a LOT of jellyfish causing havoc across the globe lately, they are clogging water intakes at nuclear plants, stinging swimmers and closing beaches and gathering in huge numbers. I know the warm summer is adding to the problem since water temps. above 76 degrees are ideal for them, but how unusual is the current situation? RSOE post from today says "Tens of millions" of the buggers have invaded New Jersey shores......
hisz.rsoe.hu...
Apparently this area has had problems for about five years so it's nothing new, but it's getting worse. An increase in nitrogen levels is blamed for a global increase in activity, along with higher temps, algae blooms and decrease in oxygen levels. What worries me is link between decrease in predators and increase in jellyfish.
So what's the deal?
1. How much of this problem is linked to climate change?
2. Is this a precursor to bigger problem on the horizon?
3. Where are the numbers on natural predator die offs?
4. Why should we care if we don't live on the coast?

reply to post by Trublbrwing


I posted something about this a couple of years ago... it was regarding my honeymoon in Malta. My wife and i love swimming and snorkelling and Malta has some of the best waters in the Med... Whilst there we noticed that there was a huge amount of jelly fish, some of them massive. I can't remember the exact species but they had only a mild sting and were more of a problem for children swimming. In fact on several occasions we see children running from the water crying that they had been stung.

Anyway, we asked some of the locals about it and they said that the water temperature had been creeping up over the last few years and this was helping them. Also, the local fishermen had all but wiped out the Turtle population meaning that the Jellyfish had no natural predator. Mix no predators with perfect breeding conditions and this is what you get.

I, for one, certainly believe that this is one of the many indicators pointing towards a bigger problem with the eco system.

Peace

reply to post by Trublbrwing


I think it means the oceans are warmer. Back in my east coast days August-September in NJ was jelly fish-o-rama

It isn't just warmer water, it is the decreasing number of predators. With nothing to eat them, it's Jellyfish gone wild!

There are however some animals who do prey on jellyfish. Some of the most common and important jellyfish predators include tuna, shark, swordfish, and at least one species of Pacific salmon, as well as sea turtles, also known as leatherback turtle

This web site is chock full of information about Jellyfish: www.jellyfishfacts.net...