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Spanish beaches in grip of jellyfish
Source: Agencies |
August 13, 2010, Friday
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Print Edition
Print Edition
A VAST flotilla of small, virtually undetectable jellyfish have stung hundreds of people on Spanish beaches this week - a swimmer's nightmare that biologists say will become increasingly common due to climate change and overfishing.
The blobs attacked three areas near the eastern city of Elche along a famed stretch of white sand beaches known as the Costa Blanca. On Tuesday alone, 380 people were stung, compared to the usual four or five swimmers a day, said Juan Carlos Castellanos of the city tourism department.
At least 700 people have been stung since Sunday.
"In the five or six years I have been in this job, I have never seen anything like this," Castellanos said.
The tourism official blamed strong currents for sweeping the jellyfish onto the beaches and then calm seas for letting them hang around for three days. Particularly warm waters - which jellyfish like - also helped boost their numbers during Spain's key summer tourism season.
One problem was these jellyfish were small and almost transparent and thinly spread out over 5 kilometers of coastline.
Far to the north, a much more menacing species looms - the Portuguese Man-of-War, a floating, violet-colored sack with meters-long tentacles. They have stung more than 300 people over the past three weeks in Atlantic waters off Spain's northern coasts of Cantabria and the Basque region, officials said.
Another problem is overfishing, which depletes stocks of tuna, swordfish and other species that are natural predators of jellyfish. And fewer fish means fewer competitors for tiny plankton that jellyfish feed on, allowing the latter to flourish, scientists said.
The blobs attacked three areas near the eastern city of Elche along a famed stretch of white sand beaches known as the Costa Blanca. On Tuesday alone, 380 people were stung, compared to the usual four or five swimmers a day, said Juan Carlos Castellanos of the city tourism department.
At least 700 people have been stung since Sunday.
"In the five or six years I have been in this job, I have never seen anything like this," Castellanos said.
The tourism official blamed strong currents for sweeping the jellyfish onto the beaches and then calm seas for letting them hang around for three days. Particularly warm waters - which jellyfish like - also helped boost their numbers during Spain's key summer tourism season.
One problem was these jellyfish were small and almost transparent and thinly spread out over 5 kilometers of coastline.
Far to the north, a much more menacing species looms - the Portuguese Man-of-War, a floating, violet-colored sack with meters-long tentacles. They have stung more than 300 people over the past three weeks in Atlantic waters off Spain's northern coasts of Cantabria and the Basque region, officials said.
Another problem is overfishing, which depletes stocks of tuna, swordfish and other species that are natural predators of jellyfish. And fewer fish means fewer competitors for tiny plankton that jellyfish feed on, allowing the latter to flourish, scientists said.
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