Insights on the origin and drift trajectories of Portuguese man of war (Physalia physalis) over the Celtic Sea shelf area

Headlam, Jasmine L; Lyons, Kieran; Kenny, Jon; Lenihan, Eamonn S.; Quigley, D. T. G.; Helps, William; Dugon, Michel M.; Doyle, Thomas K.

doi:10.1016/j.ecss.2020.107033

Cited by 17 publications

(9 citation statements)

References 36 publications

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“…A key aspect of P. physalis spread is that the colony feels the combined effects of the ocean current and the surface wind. Previous studies, with different spatial scales, used 10% (Prieto et al 2015), 2-4.5% (Ferrer and Pastor 2017), 1.8% (Ferrer et al 2015), and 4.5% (Headlam et al 2020) of the wind speed. Moreover, the precise value of the wind drag to be added to the current velocity might be dependent on the hydrodynamic model used, with its particular features (e.g.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The percentage of this wind drag that is added to the movement of the virtual colonies is a key forcing parameter and different values have been used in previous studies (e.g. Ferrer et al 2015;Prieto et al 2015;Headlam et al 2020). Therefore, we performed a validation exercise using the two previous 'Physalia-years' that occurred in 2010 and 2013 in the Mediterranean.…”

Section: Lagrangian Modelmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Copernicus Marine Service Ocean State Report, Issue 5

Schuckmann¹,

Traon²,

Smith³

et al. 2021

Journal of Operational Oceanography

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Lagrangian Modelmentioning

confidence: 99%

Copernicus Marine Service Ocean State Report, Issue 5

Schuckmann¹,

Traon²,

Smith³

et al. 2021

Journal of Operational Oceanography

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“…The siphonophore Physalia physalis was also included in the study because until recently it was considered to be an occasional visitor and is an example of a species that could increase in the NEA due to climate change (Hinder et al, 2012). Recent P. physalis outbreaks in the Celtic Sea Shelf have been attributed to wind acting as drift pathway into area 27 from more southernly latitudes (Headlam et al, 2020). Increased storminess because of climate change (Hinder et al, 2012) could result in increased numbers of P. physalis moving into the area.…”

Section: Species Selection and Threshold Assignmentmentioning

confidence: 99%

Mapping habitats for the suitability of jellyfish blooms around the UK and Ireland

et al. 2021

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There is increasing focus on the frequency of jellyfish blooms in the Northeast Atlantic because of negative interactions with humans. However, uncertainty exists as to whether perceptions of increasing bloom frequencies reflect reality due to limitations within long-term population trend data. This study therefore developed and applied a semi-quantitative mapping approach to visualise bloom suitability based on the physiological tolerance of seven jellyfish to ocean temperature, salinity, and a prey index across the Northeast Atlantic. A 10% increase and a 10% decrease in the environmental parameters was then applied to the maps to assess model sensitivity and the potential influence of environmental change on bloom suitability. The study found that optimal physiological temperatures and salinities combined with peaks in prey abundance drove higher bloom suitability and determined distribution. Several locations predicted to be at high risk of bloom occurrence off British and Irish coasts were found to coincide with areas of high anthropogenic activity that could be impacted by blooms. In the absence of long-term datasets on jellyfish population dynamics, the results and methods developed in this study allow an understanding of historic bloom events and predictions of future populations that will be useful in informing monitoring and management.

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“…[ 6 ] suggested that the massive arrival of P. physalis to the coast had been strongly influenced by an anomaly in zonal winds. Since then, massive beachings of P. physalis off the coast of Ireland in autumn 2016 (August and October) prompted further research [ 12 ] to identify source populations. Results suggested that the population of P. physalis may have originated from the North Atlantic Current, supporting the findings of [ 11 ].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Driving the blue fleet: Temporal variability and drivers behind bluebottle (Physalia physalis) beachings off Sydney, Australia

et al. 2022

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Physalia physalis, the bluebottle in Australia, are colonial siphonophores that live at the surface of the ocean, mainly in tropical and subtropical waters. P. physalis are sometimes present in large swarms, and with tentacles capable of intense stings, they can negatively impact public health and commercial fisheries. P. physalis, which does not swim, is advected by ocean currents and winds acting on its gas-filled sail. While previous studies have attempted to model the drift of P. physalis, little is known about its sources, distribution, and the timing of its arrival to shore. In this study, we present a dataset with four years of daily P. physalis beachings and stings reports at three locations off Sydney’s coast in Australia. We investigate the spatial and temporal variability of P. physalis presence (beachings and stings) in relation to different environmental parameters. This dataset shows a clear seasonal pattern where more P. physalis beachings occur in the Austral summer and less in winter. Cold ocean temperatures do not hinder the presence of P. physalis and the temperature seasonal cycle and that observed in P. physalis presence/absence time-series are out of phase by 3-4 months. We identify wind direction as the major driver of the temporal variability of P. physalis arrival to the shore, both at daily and seasonal time-scales. The differences observed between sites of the occurrence of beaching events is consistent with the geomorphology of the coastline which influences the frequency and direction of favorable wind conditions. We also show that rip currents, a physical mechanism occurring at the scale of the beach, can be a predictor of beaching events. This study is a first step towards understanding the dynamics of P. physalis transport and ultimately being able to predict its arrival to the coast and mitigating the number of people who experience painful stings and require medical help.

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Insights on the origin and drift trajectories of Portuguese man of war (Physalia physalis) over the Celtic Sea shelf area

Cited by 17 publications

References 36 publications

Copernicus Marine Service Ocean State Report, Issue 5

Copernicus Marine Service Ocean State Report, Issue 5

Mapping habitats for the suitability of jellyfish blooms around the UK and Ireland

Driving the blue fleet: Temporal variability and drivers behind bluebottle (Physalia physalis) beachings off Sydney, Australia

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