Mossel Bay is currently experiencing an influx in jellyfish and authorities have issued a warning to swimmers wanting to cool off in the ocean. The jellyfish have been identified as the night-light jellyfish or Pelagia noctiluca, according to the Mossel Bay Advertiser.
On the morning of Monday 2 March, Johan Swanepoel, a local marine enthusiast and photographer, spotted the schools of jellyfish in the bay. He spoke to Mossel Bay Advertiser and said that at at Santos Beach specifically he had warned a group of school kids on an outing not to swim in the sea. The sting of these jellyfish is very painful.
Strong winds are usually responsible for their presence in Mossel Bay. This particular species also reproduce at a rapid rate. Speaking to Mossel Bay Advertiser, Krish Lewis from the Two Oceans Aquarium said that unlike other jellyfish species that seasonally reproduce, night-lights produce larvae that turn into baby jellyfish within a few days. Lewis is specialising in jellyfish and coral husbandry.
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