Posted13 July 2022, 06:26
MediterraneanJellyfish disrupt Swiss holidays
The Mediterranean rim, very popular with the Swiss, is infested with jellyfish. This scourge is likely to recur with global warming. Swiss tour operators are worried.
They are small, purple and their stings are incredibly painful: jellyfish infest the beaches of the Mediterranean coast, especially those of Corsica and the Côte d’Azur, very popular with Swiss tourists. Consequence: holidaymakers sometimes no longer dare to dip a toe in the sea.
Hic: this year’s phenomenon is likely to recur frequently in the summer due to global warming. “Not only the higher water temperatures, but there are also fewer predators that feed on jellyfish,” explains Sigrid Lüber, president of Oceancare, to our colleagues from 20 Minuten. The phenomenon also strongly affects the Adriatic where the number of these gelatinous animals could explode due to the low level of the rivers.
Warming up too quickly
“No sea in the world is warming as much as the Mediterranean”, already underlined the WWF in 2021. A finding that is confirmed this year again: the temperature of the water currently reaches 24 to 26 degrees on the Italian coasts, while It should be around 20-24°C maximum. Corollary: this situation allows jellyfish, especially tropical species, to reproduce until the winter period.
Jellyfish, which appeared 600 million years ago, are among the first inhabitants of the planet. Made up of 95 to 98% water, brainless, able to float and swim but not resist ocean currents, they are part of the zooplankton family. And “they are present all year round, in a current that goes around the Mediterranean and tends to stay offshore”, explained to AFP Fabien Lombard, teacher-researcher at the Villefranche-sur oceanography center. -Sea (F). “It was the southerly flow that brought them back to the coasts”. Sites like meduseo.com track their presence.
The proliferation of jellyfish in the Mediterranean basin according to the site meduseo.com. In red, the sites where their presence is the strongest.
Tour operators worried
In the world of Swiss travel, the situation is being observed with great attention. At Kuoni, there has not yet been any negative feedback from customers complaining that swimming at the destinations offered by the group is compromised due to jellyfish, a spokesperson said. But the tour operator and its affiliated brands are on guard: if the situation were to worsen, they plan to take action.
Jellyfish, a treasure for science
(cht)