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Jellyfish and sea nettles invasion
From app onliine -
Stinging jellyfish taking over bay
Nettlesome nuisance returns
By Kirk Moore • TOMS RIVER BUREAU • July 27, 2008
The sea nettles of Barnegat Bay are back with a vengeance, and this summer's bloom of the stinging jellyfish has people looking for progress on the state government's pledge to reduce nutrient overenrichment in the bay.
"They've been in the Chesapeake Bay for years, and now they're here. I can't believe they're here. It makes me so mad," said Robert Warner, a lifelong boater and fisherman from Toms River. "We were taking the grandkids tubing a few weeks ago, and they had to come out of the water, it was so bad."
In a June 1 address at Island Heights, state Department of Environmental Protection Commissioner Lisa Jackson announced the agency would take steps toward reducing an overabundance of nitrogen compounds flowing into the bay, such as encouraging towns to mandate limits on fertilizer, thought to be an important nitrogen source.
That work has begun as the DEP, the Barnegat Bay National Estuary Program and Rutgers University scientists try to quantify and trace nitrogen in the bay watershed, said Michael Borgatti, a science researcher for the environmental group Save Barnegat Bay.
Last February, internal meetings among DEP workers and other experts outlined a work plan for dealing with the nitrogen issue, which is not measured by the agency's usual suite of water-quality tests.
"The start of those biological indicators is a big step," said Karen Hershey, a DEP spokeswoman.
Since the 1990s, standard water-quality criteria such as bacteria counts and oxygen levels showed things were getting better in Barnegat Bay — even as key elements of its ecosystem like underwater eelgrass meadows and clam beds declined. The culprit there is nutrient pollution, but nitrogen levels are so transient that biological indicators and modeling are needed to measure its true impact, according to Michael Kennish, a research professor who heads bay research at Rutgers.
"There are conflicting ideas about where the pollution is coming from," said Borgatti, whose group is participating in those discussions. "I'd say surface runoff and shallow ground water that flows right under the lawns are the biggest contributors."
Save Barnegat Bay activists cite research suggesting that 858,000 pounds a year of nitrogen goes into the bay, 30 percent of it from suburban lawn fertilizer.
The emergence of sea nettles in Barnegat Bay since 2004 is linked by scientists to the bay's eutrophication, a process triggered by overdoses of nitrogen compounds that fertilize the bay and feed great blooms of microscopic plants. Sea nettle numbers are influenced by water temperature and other factors, but a number of Barnegat and Chesapeake scientists and environmental workers think the jellyfish swarms are symptomatic of massive shifts in the bay ecology, brought on by nutrient pollution from land.
"I got that one an hour ago in Lavallette. I just reached down from a dock and grabbed the first one I saw," said educator Jim Merritt, who arrived to give a talk in Bay Head last week toting a big pickle jar with a sea nettle pulsing inside.
With their stinging tentacles 3 to 5 feet long, sea nettles are one problem making Barnegat Bay "unfishable and unswimmable" in some places, said Merritt, who runs environmental education workshops at the Sedge House near Island Beach State Park.
Excess nitrogen comes from many sources ranging from air pollution to lawn fertilizer, and Barnegat Bay is especially susceptible because its has only three small, widely separated outlets to the sea, Merritt said.
"It takes about 75 days in the summer for the bay to flush. That's a long, long time," Merritt said. Meanwhile, "we still have really, really big overdevelopment. Barnegat Bay to me is starting to look like a bathtub, surrounded by bulkheads."
Members of the Ocean County chapter of the Sierra Club got a sobering look at those effects July 19, when the group held a picnic at Brick's Windward Park beach. The swimming area was empty because sea nettles were so thick in the Metedeconk River, said Jeff Tittel, the group's state executive director.
"We've had watershed studies, estuary studies and now it's literally biting us on the bottom," Tittel said angrily of the stinging jellyfish. "We're going to study it to death. It's time to do something. . . . We should have ordinances to make people pick up their pet waste, require low-nutrient fertilizers like they're doing in the Passaic River watershed."
Failing that, Tittel said, environmental groups should go to court. The bay's biggest tributaries, the Toms River and Metedeconk, have been designated for Category 1 protections by the DEP, "yet every day the DEP is allowing that bay to get dirtier and dirtier," he said.
The agency's own Coastal Area Facility Review Act regulations can make the problem worse, Tittel added. "If you look at the (development) density that CAFRA would allow in the watershed, there would be 100,000 more units," he said.
One goal is to develop safe maximums for nitrogen in tributary streams, a standard known as total maximum daily loads or TMDLs, said Borgatti of Save Barnegat Bay. Once those are established, DEP regulators can "work backward" to identify and control local sources on the bay's rivers and creeks, he said.
With the Barnegat Bay task force, "the DEP is doing a great job of organizing this," Borgatti said. But, he added, "it's a question of the time frame" before action is taken.
But there are actions to be taken in the meantime, like passing fertilizer ordinances, Borgatti added. "You've got to look at industries you can regulate," he said. "We need to find the best, readily available ways of doing this."
Warner said it can't happen fast enough for him: "It seems to get worse every year. When I get in the water to scrub my boat, I put on a full-length track suit."
Sea nettles require more than just a letter
I read this article and was wondering how do these nasty little things effect the fishing, if at all?
Sea nettles require more than just a letter
Iread the article about Sen. Frank Lautenberg's recovery from cancer. ("U.S. Sen. Lautenberg of N.J. says he's cancer-free," June 28.) I am happy his treatment was successful. However, those of us who live in the Barnegat Bay area are still waiting for him to fulfill his promise to combat the invasion of sea nettles, or jellyfish, in our waters.
Sea nettles began appearing in increasing numbers about four years ago. This has had a negative impact on recreation, fishing and the Jersey Shore economy. When he was contacted, Lautenberg promised to launch an investigation. Many of us waited for some result.
Finally, about two years later, we called the senator's office to find out what was being done. We were told that he wrote a letter to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. When we asked what the outcome was, we were told we would be called back.
Finally, after we made four more phone calls, were were told that a copy of the letter was in a file, but that "no one had answered the letter." The person we spoke with told us "that happens a lot" and that there often is no follow-up.
Since the senator is supposed to be looking out for the people of this state, shouldn't he do more than dictate a letter?
The sea nettles are back in full force again this year. Overfishing, fertilizer run-off and other reasons have been offered to explain the problem. However, as far as we can tell, nothing is being done.
Perhaps Lautenberg can now find the time to go through his files, find his letter and do something more about the situation. Isn't that part of his job?
Victoria R. Krezonis
TOMS RIVER
http://www.app.com/apps/pbcs.dll/art...ID=20107070311
Re: Sea nettles require more than just a letter
they say if you get stung you can pee on it and it won't hurt so much but that is gross
any know what type of jelly fish this is ?
http://youtu.be/iwsEQETOJvA
Any know what type of jelly fish this is ?
they were all over RB ...well the section I was at
I was standing there throwing when a perfect one drifted by ...so I went a got my camera and this one was going by and it was kind of mess up.
do they sting ?
Re: any know what type of jelly fish this is ?
yeah one not to mess with :wow:
Re: any know what type of jelly fish this is ?
Name ? there was a guy fishing in shorts about 100 yard down from me. I had my waders on and there were a lot of them.
Re: any know what type of jelly fish this is ?
madcaster that looks like a sea nettle. They are a big problem in the summer in Barnegat Bay.
Hot Topics: Sea nettles in Barnegat Bay
Sea nettles (Chrysaora quinquecirrha), a type of stinging jellyfish, are present in the waters of Barnegat Bay and other coastal waterways of New Jersey. For a quick overview of the jellyfish situation, watch the video below from July 2010.
What do they look like?
The adult sea nettle is bell-shaped and pale white and often has reddish markings along the surface. It has long thin tentacles around the edge of the bell (see image above right). Watch the animated video below to learn about the fascinating life cycle of the sea nettle!
WHY ARE THEY HERE?
Sea nettles have always been a part of the Barnegat Bay’s ecosystem; their apparent increase in abundance is a relatively recent phenomenon. A number of potential causes for this increase have been suggested by scientists. Increased development around the bay, including bulkheads, pilings, and floating docks, may be providing more places for the scyphistoma to attach. A single floating dock can hold thousands of scyphistoma, which asexually produce millions of jellyfishes, such as sea nettles. Sea nettles, and some other jellyfish, have a relatively narrow salinity preference, so development of the waterfront within that salinity zone, especially pilings, floating docks, and bulkheads, may have inadvertently contributed to the spread of sea nettles and other jellyfish.
Changes in the bay’s salinity may also have an effect. Sea nettles prefer a lower salinity zone, so large-scale natural changes in salinity, such as dry years, may affect their abundance and distribution in the bay. Certain human activities affecting the water cycle (e.g., large offshore discharges of treated sewage effluent, dams, reservoirs, shallow wells) also cause large-scale changes in salinity and may also affect the distribution of jellies in the bay. Both the increasing water consumption throughout the watershed and sea level rise may further change salinities in the bay and affect the distribution and abundance of jellies.
The removal of predators and potential competitors for food through increased fishing pressure may also affect sea nettle abundance. However, we do not know which species of fish or other animal, if any, prey on sea nettles in Barnegat Bay. Lastly, the bay’s eutrophication may also be creating favorable conditions for sea nettles and other jellies (see diagram below). First, the nutrient inputs to the bay often lead to high production (i.e., growth) of certain flagellates and other small zooplankton, known as microplankton. Some jellies can feed efficiently on micoplankton in the bay’s turbid waters and may out-compete fishes and other visually-feeding predators. Lastly, some jellies are less sensitive to low dissolved oxygen, which occurs episodically during summer and early fall in certain parts of the bay.
There are at least five potential factors contributing to the expansion of the sea nettle population in the Barnegat Bay estuary.
1. The “hardening” of shorelines throughout the bay (e.g., bulkheads, pilings, docks) provides habitat for jellyfish “polyps.” Each jellyfish polyp buds off many baby jellyfish.
2. Changes in the salinity in the bay can shift the distribution of jellies in the bay, as some jellies, including sea nettles, have a “narrow” salinity tolerance. Examples of factors that can cause large-scale changes in salinity include weather conditions, increased potable water use, and large offshore discharges of sewage effluent.
3. Increasing water temperature accelerates growth rates and maturation of sea nettles.
4. Fishing affects the abundance of jellies in the bay: different fish species may eat polyps, larvae, and adult jellies. Some fishes and other animals also compete with jellies for their microscopic food, such as copepods.
5. Eutrophication, an increase in the bay’s production due to nutrient loading (see a,b, and c, above), also may affect the abundance of jellies. Nutrients stimulate the production (growth) of phytoplankton, which leads to increases in small zooplankton (such as copepods) which are the favorite food of jellies. Phytoplankton production also makes the water more turbid, making it difficult for visually-feeding animals, such as fishes, to find food. Eutrophication may also reduce the oxygen in the water. Unlike fishes and most other invertebrates, most jellies are tolerant of low oxygen conditions.
Can we get rid of them?
Since jellyfish have always been a part of the bay’s ecosystem, the goal would be population control, not complete eradication. There have been a number of attempts to control jellyfish worldwide, but none have been particularly effective. Nets and bubble screens have been used to keep them away from swimming areas, but the jellyfish either clogged the mesh of the nets or the tentacles were broken into pieces that continued to sting. The bottom-living stage of their life was targeted with chemicals, but that also killed many other organisms. A combination of actions that target the potential reasons for their increase as outlined above may be the best long-term solution.
WHAT SHOULD I DO IF I'M STUNG?
Prevention of stings through the use of lightweight protective clothing (lycra "rash guards” or panty hose), or petroleum jelly spread on unprotected skin, is recommended for areas with high concentrations of sea nettles. If you are stung, clean the affected area with salt water to remove any tentacles remaining on the skin (fresh water may cause more stings from any tentacles remaining on the skin). Apply shaving cream, or a paste of baking soda and salt water, and scrape it off to help remove any remaining stingers. Ice may help with pain and itching. Seek medical attention for any serious reactions.
http://bbp.ocean.edu/pages/323.asp
Re: any know what type of jelly fish this is ?
Thanks for the info bababooey. I have seen those too and got stung by one once. Nasty
Re: any know what type of jelly fish this is ?
you're welcome sea monkey.
Re: any know what type of jelly fish this is ?
Some more Atlantic sea nettle info. PS - if you get stung peeing on the stung part does not really work, unless you are kinky and it is some strange fetish you have.:laugh:
http://www.aqua.org/learn/~/media/Fi...t_Advanced.pdf
The Atlantic sea nettle’s medusa isabout the size of a softball and hasbrown, red or sometimes purple stripes.As a sea nettle, this jelly has very longtentacles that trail from its medusa andare used for defense and catching prey.The Atlantic sea nettle eats zooplankton,other jellies, and sometimes crustaceans,
which it stuns with the nematocysts
along its tentacles. These same nematocystsare responsible for stinging about500,000 humans each year. One treatmentfor jelly stings is to apply vinegar to thesting site, which neutralizes the toxinsreleased into the skin from the nematocysts.
Despite urban myths, urine is not
effective in neutralizing a jelly sting.
Re: any know what type of jelly fish this is ?
thanks for the info bababooey....now I know ....low tide they were all over the beach as well
Re: any know what type of jelly fish this is ?
madcaster have you seen any more of these since you posted in may or do you think the hot waters of the bay made them go elsewhere?
