Portuguese Man-of-War (Physalia physalis) in the Mediterranean: A permanent invasion or a casual appearance?

• Published in: Scientific Reports
• Main Authors: Prieto, Laura, Macías, Diego, Peliz, Álvaro, Ruiz Segura, Javier
• Other Authors: Junta de Andalucía, Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad (España), European Commission
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: Springer Nature 2015
• Subjects: Estrecho; Observatorio; North East Atlantic
• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/10261/168497; https://doi.org/10.1038/srep11545; https://doi.org/10.13039/501100000780; https://doi.org/10.13039/501100003329; https://doi.org/10.13039/501100011011

In 2010, the Mediterranean basin experienced Portuguese Man-of-War (Physalia physalis) swarms that had dramatic consequences, including the region’s first recorded human fatality attributed to a jellyfish sting. Despite the impact of jellyfish on coastal economic activity and the importance of the tourism industry for the Mediterranean region (accounting for 15% of global tourism), no scientific consensus has been achieved regarding the causes of this episode. Here, we analyse the meteorological and oceanographic conditions of the North-East Atlantic Ocean during the months previous to the appearance of P. physalis in the Mediterranean. We simulate the probable drift of Atlantic populations into the Mediterranean basin with a numerical model and compare model results with available observations. We conclude that the summer 2010 P. Physalis swarm was the result of an unusual combination of meteorological and oceanographic conditions during the previous winter and not a permanent invasion favoured by climatic changes. This work was supported by projects MarinERA MedEx (CTM2008-04036-E/MAR, MARIN-ERA/MAR/0002/2008), JELLY-PHYS (CTM2011-22856), Observatorio del Estrecho (Junta de Andalucía) and PERSEUS (FP7-287600). A research grant to L.P. from Ramon y Cajal Programme of Spanish MIC is also acknowledged. Peer reviewed