Thousands of dangerous jellyfish hit the shores of the resort town of Antalya, Turkish media reported. Eyewitnesses reported that because of the huge number of sea creatures, the beaches began to seem like a white sheet, and experts warned that approaching living creatures and, moreover, touching them can be very dangerous.
According to the Turkish Department of Fisheries, we are talking about white wanderer jellyfish, scientifically – Rhopilema Nomadica. A strong storm brought them from the Red Sea to the Turkish coast in the area of the popular cities of Belek and Serik in the province of Antalya.
According to Dr. Gekoglu, a professor at Akdeniz University Faculty, the jellyfish deviated from their course due to a strong northeast wind, which created a powerful current, and as a result, a colony of many thousands washed up on the coast. The entrance gate for sea creatures living in the warm Red Sea is the Suez Canal.
“The reason for what we saw is that a very strong wind blows in Antalya to this day. Therefore, surface waters are picked up by the north wind and pull the jellyfish up. The wind also pulls water from the bottom, creating a current directed towards the shore. In this case, water was sucked from the trajectory of the main current into the Gulf of Antalya. Therefore, Belek and Serik were overwhelmed with thousands of jellyfish,” the expert explained.
The problem is that this species is dangerous for humans. The Wandering Jellyfish belongs to the Cnidaria family. Members of this family attack their prey (plankton) and defend themselves with stinging cells containing real poisoned arrows. Dead jellyfish are also dangerous. They automatically inject poison into the skin using microscopic syringe needles that are on the tentacles, which leads to a burn or poisoning.
Therefore, Turkish experts urged tourists to beware of these animals and not to touch them, no matter how impressive they may seem. By the way, their weight can reach 20 kilograms.
However, there is good news: the jellyfish crossing will be completed in May and June. This means that their density on the coasts of Turkish resorts will noticeably decrease in the summer season, experts reassured vacationers.
For those who care about a healthy lifestyle, we recommend reading: “Scientists have named the foods for dinner that lead to death ”.
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