Jellyfish numbers surge due to climate change

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A surge of jellyfish wreaked havoc in the U.S. during the countrys big Fourth of July holiday weekend.Almost 2,000 beach-goers were stung as they celebrated Independence Day weekend in the surf at Volusia County, Florida.
And in Israel ahuge swarm clogged up the Orot Rabin power station in Hadera, a day after the Torness nuclear facility in Scotland was closed in a similar incident.

Nuisance: A digger drops jellyfish cleared from the power station in Hadera, Israel

Slimy: Jellyfish cover the floor of the power station in IsaelHaderaran into trouble when jellyfish blocked its seawater supply, which it uses for cooling purposes, forcing officials to use diggers to remove them.In Florida, BeachPatrol spokeswoman Captain Tamara Marris reported the staggering statistics but stressed that no victims were seriously injured.Amidsoaring temperatures in the sunshine state, Jellyfish targeted sunseekers along a 20-mile stretch from Ormond Beach to New Smyrna Beach.

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The influx was thought to be down to onshore winds bringing more jellyfish into contact with bathers.
Beachofficials identified two species as the culprits - moon and cannonball jellyfish - but say moon jellyfish are likely to be the main culprits.The cannonball jellyfish is not really a stinging jellyfish, Marris said.
It'sreally not a seasonal thing. They are just at the mercy of the wind andcurrent, so they can show up any time of the year.

Attack: Ormond Beach was attacked by a swarm ! of jelly fish over the holiday weekend Scientists say the number of jellyfish are on the rise thanks to the increasing acidity of the worlds oceans driving away the blubbery creatures' natural predators.
The warning came in a report into ocean acidification an often overlooked side effect of burning fossil fuel.
Studieshave shown that higher levels of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere doesnt just trigger climate change but can make the oceans more acidic.
Since the start of the industrial revolution, acidity levels of the oceans have gone up 30 per cent, marine biologists say.

Disruption: Containers filled with jellyfish at Orot Rabin coal-fired power stationThe report, published in December 2010 by the UN Environment Programme, warns that the acidification of oceans makes it harder for coral reefs and shellfish to form skeletons threatening larger creatures that depend on them for food.The decline in creatures with shells could trigger an explosion in jellyfish populations.
Thereport, written by Dr Carol Turley of Plymouth University, said: Oceanacidification has also been tentatively linked to increased jellyfish numbers and changes in fish abundance.
Jellyfishare immune to the effects of acidification. As other species decline, jellyfish will move in to fill the ecological niche.
Populationshave boomed in the Mediterranean in recent years. Some marine scientists say the changing chemistry of the sea is to blame.