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Poco
Canada
228 Posts |
Posted - 08/07/2012 : 2:05 PM
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Hi all, I'm planning a 4 day camping trip up the Indian Arm this month. I remember last Summer (first wk of sept), the water was packed with jellyfish.. went out yesterday (up to twin islands) and I didnt see any. I'd love to get in the water for a swim, but the number of jellyfish last year creeped me out.
Silly question, where'd they go? |
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660 Posts |
Posted - 08/07/2012 : 3:49 PM
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Jellyfish swarms happen. I've seen some. Our area, being relatively pristine and not subject to eutrophication has only the normal mating swarms. How they arrange the meeting spot remains a mystery, it is not in the same place and time every year like most species would it.
After they have their semi-kinky version of an orgy they disperse again.
Look up jellyfish's life-cycle, fascinating. |
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7 Posts |
Posted - 08/07/2012 : 3:54 PM
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I recall seeing what looked like millions one time going to granite Falls (most dense near Twin islands),.. but that was in July or earlier as I recall. I think it is only partially predictable, perhaps based on temperature of water as much as nature cycles etc.
-Sv
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 Outward Bound author of the Seinfeld Thread, who builds his own snowshoes
Troy, MT
USA
3122 Posts |
Posted - 08/07/2012 : 4:24 PM
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| I went up Indian Arm in May and there were tons. Freaked me out at first before I figured out what they were. |
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Poco
Canada
228 Posts |
Posted - 08/07/2012 : 5:34 PM
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Thanks guys. Last yr, I didn't notice em til twin islands.
alexcanuck: I did a quick skim through a few articles. It's an interesting read. They really are ugly looking things at any stage.
Underwater shot from last Sept:
Fingers crossed that they dont come back in 2 weeks. |
Edited by - ashi on 08/07/2012 5:58 PM |
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Qualicum Beach, BC
Canada
1304 Posts |
Posted - 08/07/2012 : 6:28 PM
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Jellyfish ugly? They are the most graceful dancers on the planet. For humans, they can be benign or sting like a hot poker. I was once stung by a Portuguese Man of War, (as a child in Florida) and I know. As well,in the 1970's as an abalone diver on the BC coast, I got a face full of the 3 foot diameter Lion's Mane jellyfish.
It's been said that when humans destroy the earth that cockroaches will survive. Well, when we destroy the oceans jellyfish will survive.
If there are jellyfish in the waters where you want to swim, stick a leg in. If it doesn't sting, then go for a swim. Swimming among dense non-stinging jellyfish is quite a sensual experience.
Peter |
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North Vancouver, BC
Canada
1262 Posts |
Posted - 08/07/2012 : 6:36 PM
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| Petting jellyfish is fine , fondling is not. |
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Burnaby, BC
Canada
1293 Posts |
Posted - 08/07/2012 : 6:42 PM
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quote:
Originally posted by ashi
Underwater shot from last Sept:
Those are moon jellyfish, and fairly harmless.
It's the brownish-red ones you gotta watch out for, that periodically swarms around here too. Their name familiar to Sherlock Holmes fans. |
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Burnaby, BC
Canada
1293 Posts |
Posted - 08/07/2012 : 6:43 PM
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quote:
Originally posted by prother
Swimming among dense non-stinging jellyfish is quite a sensual experience.
Say what? |
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Qualicum Beach, BC
Canada
1304 Posts |
Posted - 08/07/2012 : 7:09 PM
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I guess I need to clarify sensual, rather than what maybe people are confusing with sexual. Have you ever had someone take a feather and trace your facial features?... That's sensual. What happens after might be sexual.
Swimming among jellyfish can be sensual. What you do with jello is your business.
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Poco
Canada
228 Posts |
Posted - 08/07/2012 : 7:14 PM
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quote:
Originally posted by prother
Jellyfish ugly? They are the most graceful dancers on the planet.
I'll have to agree, Peter. But I find them ugly when I'm at risk of swimming with them 
Good to know these guys are harmless.
Someone told me you're at higher risk of being stung by the little jellyfish along/closer to the shoreline vs the bigger ones in deep water. Any truth to that?
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Qualicum Beach, BC
Canada
1304 Posts |
Posted - 08/07/2012 : 8:20 PM
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As far as I know, there is no rhyme or reason to jellyfish stings in relation to colour or size or what depth they're at.
Maybe on our west coast, we could generally say clear jellys are OK, but yellowish ones aren't, but in Australia they have a small clear jelly called a "Box Jellyfish" which has a sting that gives the equivalent of a second degree burn on contact and has been known to kill people.
So, some may be harmless,but others could be deadly. So far, I haven't heard of any deadly jelly's on the BC coast... Any jellyologist's out there?
Peter |
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Vancouver
1816 Posts |
Posted - 08/07/2012 : 9:22 PM
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| Just back from an overnight paddle to Granite Falls. No jellyfish seen. Bazillions of powerboats yesterday, almost none today. Two hours of paddling the north end of Indian Arm with glassy water and no powerboats is very enjoyable. Plenty of other evidence of heavy usage of the area by goons over the long weekend. |
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Vancouver, BC
Canada
2659 Posts |
Posted - 08/07/2012 : 9:26 PM
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quote:
Originally posted by prother
As far as I know, there is no rhyme or reason to jellyfish stings in relation to colour or size or what depth they're at.
I'm pretty sure the seriousness of the sting is mostly related to the species. We have a few that can sting, but not too badly AFAIK. |
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canine loving, machete-toting bushwhacking lake seeker, Indiana Jones hat-wearing off-road 4x4 guru
Surrey Hole, BC
Canada
6773 Posts |
Posted - 08/07/2012 : 9:27 PM
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| maybe they should make a movie where goons get taken by jellyfish |
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Fleece thong wearin, Buntzen Lurkin, mystic poet mountain man and international spokesman of the friends of the white squirrel society
Port Moody, B.C.
Canada
5900 Posts |
Posted - 08/07/2012 : 11:23 PM
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I spent years boating & swimming in the Arm. The only time I was stung was when I pulled my tow rope thru a swarm. As for them being ugly ... I don't find that . I think they are very cool.
  
Now coming face to face with a big Ling Cod is creepy. Those suckers have big teeth ! |
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925 Posts |
Posted - 08/08/2012 : 1:03 PM
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quote:
Originally posted by The Hiker
I spent years boating & swimming in the Arm. The only time I was stung was when I pulled my tow rope thru a swarm. As for them being ugly ... I don't find that . I think they are very cool.
Now coming face to face with a big Ling Cod is creepy. Those suckers have big teeth !
I came face to face with a live Ling Cod last time I was diving in Howe Sound. All I could think of was dinner as I drooled into my regulator. |
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18 Posts |
Posted - 08/08/2012 : 1:26 PM
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quote:
Originally posted by prother
As far as I know, there is no rhyme or reason to jellyfish stings in relation to colour or size or what depth they're at.
Back in my days working commercial craypots in Fiordland, New Zealand and recreational diving in NZ, Australia and the South Pacific, I usually found the big yellow, green and orange jellys to be OK and not particularly bothered by human presence. Aussie box jellys are another matter as you say... The smaller ones seem to be more aggro - maybe a "small jelly syndrome"!?
Sticking a leg in though (or your buddy's leg) is a good idea before taking the plunge. You can throw a wetsuit on if really concerned.
Fascinating creatures, love the way they move. Word is that jelly numbers are on a big increase in the Pacific, particularly off Japan and the Kamchatka Peninsula. Not sure if this is a cyclical thing or something related to ocean warming / PH changes. |
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 | Dru
Mountain Grammar Police
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Sardonic sandbagging scoundrel, Cascade Climbers lobotomized spraymeister, space blanket flyer, new millennium vulgarian betaboy and friend to all squids
Climbing, a mountain
Canada
∞ Posts |
Posted - 08/08/2012 : 1:44 PM
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quote:
Word is that jelly numbers are on a big increase in the Pacific, particularly off Japan and the Kamchatka Peninsula. Not sure if this is a cyclical thing or something related to ocean warming / PH changes.
When you fish your way down the food chain, eventually jelly is all that's left. |
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Happy go lucky, plaid wearin, postholin, safeway gaitor sportin, old-school film shootin, giver of many regards
Abbotsford, B.C.
Canada
13447 Posts |
Posted - 08/08/2012 : 2:02 PM
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quote:
Originally posted by Aqua Terra
maybe they should make a movie where goons get taken by jellyfish
It came from outer space.
K |
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Qualicum Beach, BC
Canada
1304 Posts |
Posted - 08/08/2012 : 6:24 PM
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| Another interesting phenomenon is the phosphorescence that happens at night in the salt water. I've sailed at night and watched the phosphorescence glow trail behind the boat for three times my boat's length. Also, at anchor, you can watch smaller and bigger fish chase around. To jump in for a swim at night and have everything glow and race by in bursts of phosphorescence is truly spooky! |
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Jellyfish in the Indian Arm?
