[link to hisz.rsoe.hu]


Just a week after experts allayed fears of an invasion by the Portuguese Man o’ War, saying that there is no evidence that these enormous marine creatures have drifted close to our shores, swimmer are facing yet another menace that has the potential of keeping people away from our shores: an invasion of jellyfish. Hundreds of jellyfish have been appearing off Gnejna Bay and on the surrounding beaches. Hot weather and warmer seas have attracted the creatures into the Maltese waters. However, an increase in the number of jellyfish floating to our inner shores is also due to a decrease in predators that feed on jellyfish: turtles and dolphins.


People going to Gnejna would be forgiven for thinking that Malta is being deliberately invaded by them as there are absolutely hundreds upon hundreds of them.The Pelagia noctiluca, the species which invaded the Maltese shores, is an oceanic species widely dispersed in warm waters and very common in the Mediterranean. It has a small mauve or pink mushroom-shaped body ranging from 4 to 12 centimetres in diameter with 8 pale brown tentacles usually between 10cm and 30cm in length.)