Giant stinging jellyfish swarm the beaches of Malaga

Giant stinging jellyfish swarm the beaches of Malaga

Giant stinging jellyfish swarm the beaches of Malaga

Giant stinging jellyfish swarm the beaches of Malaga
An increased presence of the jellyfish has been reported over the last few days at the beaches in and surrounding the province of Malaga, on the southern coast of Spain’s Costa del Sol.
Experts from the Aula del Mar marine conservation organisation in Malaga had already said to expect that the summer was going to be “complicated” in terms of the presence of jellyfish on the Costa del Sol.

Pelagia noctiluca – the larger stinging jellyfish, are here in numbers!

“This year we were sure that there were going to be a series of conditions that would favour a high presence, as has finally happened this week,” biologist Jesús Bellido said after the group registered high numbers of the creatures along the entire Malaga coastline.
“However, there is a slight relief as it started in mid-August and has not affected the month of July,” added Bellido.

The Aula del Mar team recorded a high presence of jellyfish in Benalmadena, Fuengirola and Marbella after a similar problem occurred on Nerja’s beaches the day before.

“Now the sea seems to be cold but before the summer it was much warmer. There were a series of ideal conditions to create a high presence of jellyfish in the Alboran Sea,” after blaming the climatic factors in spring.

A mixture of species
According to Aula del Mar, the main species observed on the coast are the Pelagia noctiluca, which is predominant in the western stretch, and the Rhizostoma luteum species that continue to flood the beaches between Malaga and the Axarquia coast.

Pelagia noctiluca – just one of the species of jellyfish arriving on Spanish beaches this summer. image: Wikipedia

The Infomedusa app, which monitors the jellyfish situation along the whole of the Costa de Sol, has been developed by the Aula del Mar with the collaboration of Malaga’s provincial council, it is worth downloading to check the presence of jellyfish before you enter the water with children.
Are jellyfish stings dangerous?
Jellyfish stings vary greatly in severity. Most often they result in immediate pain and red, irritated marks on the skin. Some jellyfish stings may cause more whole-body (systemic) illness but only in very rare cases are jellyfish stings life-threatening.


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Ron Howells

Ron actually started his working career as an Ophthalmic Technician- things changed when, during a band rehearsal, his amplifier blew up and he couldn’t get it fixed so he took a course at Birmingham University and ended up doing a degree course. He built up a chain of electronics stores and sold them as a franchise over 35 years ago. After five years touring the world Ron decided to move to Spain with his wife and son, a place they had visited over the years, and only bought the villa they live in because it has a guitar-shaped swimming pool!. Playing the guitar since the age of 7, he can often be seen, (and heard!) at beach bars and clubs along the length of the coast. He has always been interested in the news and constantly thrives to present his articles in an interesting and engaging way.

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