Arrival of giant jellyfish alarms bathers on Costa del Sol beach

Experts say they are specimens of the Rhizostoma luteum species, which can exceed 50 centimetres in diameter, weigh 40 kilos and have tentacles up to three metres long - although their sting is described as "very mild"

Ignacio Lillo

Malaga

Friday, 13 September 2024, 09:32

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The presence of giant jellyfish alarmed some bathers on Cabopino beach, in Marbella, on Thursday 12 September. Some of them sent this newspaper photos and videos, which SUR put in the hands of marine biologists to identify them.

The experts identified them as specimens of the Rhizostoma luteum species, which can exceed 50 centimetres in diameter, weigh 40 kilos and have tentacles up to three metres long. And their arrival on the beaches of the Costa del Sol is becoming increasingly frequent, according to Jesús Bellido, an experienced marine biologist and current coordinator of the technical office of the Spanish committee of the IUCN.

"It is a species that since the beginning of the 21st century has become much more frequent on the coasts of Malaga province," Bellido said. The Aula del Mar Foundation and the Infomedusa app project have been monitoring its evolution for years. "We have noticed that it tends to be much more frequent in the last month of summer, from mid-August and especially in September."

"Stinging water"

Despite being very striking, due to their large size and long tentacles, the reality is that the sting is "very mild": "It presents itself, rather than as pain, as a stinging sensation or discomfort in areas of the body where we have thinner skin." In addition, Rhizostoma luteum are the cause of an effect that the researcher defines as "the water that stings". "These jellyfish release stinging cells, like a mucus that mixes with the water, and that when in contact with soft parts, such as the inner thighs, produces itching.

Furthermore, Jesús Bellido also encouraged visitors to the beaches to admire the beauty of these large jellyfish: "When they are at their peak, they are beautiful."

Colloquially referred to in some places as "barrel jellyfish", due to the shape of its tentacles, since its discovery at the end of the 19th century until recently there were doubts in the scientific community about its existence as a species in itself, due to the scarcity of testimonies and evidence. However, in the summer of 2012, some 50 specimens were observed on the Spanish Mediterranean coast, specifically on the beaches of Murcia, Almeria, Granada and Malaga provinces, which made its increasingly frequent presence on the Spanish Mediterranean coast clear, according to information on Wikipedia.

Its ecological function is clear, as it usually serves as protection from predators for the young of several species of edible fish, such as horse mackerel. It is generally a pelagic animal that lives in open waters and, until recently, was rarely seen in coastal waters, where it is often washed up by currents or storms. They are more frequent on the eastern Atlantic coast, from the Bay of Biscay to Senegal, although they are increasingly common on beaches in the Strait of Gibraltar and the Alboran Sea off the Costa del Sol.

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