Uploaded by NTDTV on Nov 30, 2009
Vast numbers of Echizen jellyfish have appeared on Japan‘s Pacific coast this year, apparently after drifting from spawning grounds in Chinese and Korean waters.
An Echizen jellyfish can measure up to 2.2 meters in diameter and weigh up to 300 kg.
The non-edible creatures have caught fishermen in their grip, as the monster invertebrates clog nets and poison and crush catches with their stingers.
“I had never seen anything like this big before.”
Some experts say the outbreak of jellyfish this season has cost Japan’s fishing industry more than 100 million dollars.
Jellyfish even sank one Japanese fishing boat in the Pacific recently, after the vessel capsized because the weight of the creature stuck in its net.
Still, much about the mega-jellyfish remains a mystery.
[Kiyoshi Kawasaki, Asst. Director, Japan Fisheries Research Agency]:
“The rising sea temperatures could be a factor behind this phenomenon as they foster the growth of these jellyfish.”
Pollution in the waters off China is also cited as a factor, which has made it easier for jellyfish to breed.
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