Seasonal patterns in size and abundance of <Emphasis Type="Italic">Phyllorhiza punctata</Emphasis>: an invasive scyphomedusa in coastal Georgia (USA) |
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Authors: | Peter?G?Verity Email author" target="_blank">J?E?PurcellEmail author M?E?Frischer |
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Institution: | (1) Skidaway Institute of Oceanography, 10 Ocean Science Circle, Savannah, GA 31411, USA;(2) Western Washington University, Shannon Point Marine Center, 1900 Shannon Point Road, Anacortes, WA 98221, USA; |
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Abstract: | Phyllorhiza
punctata, commonly called the Australian white spotted jellyfish, invaded the Caribbean in the 1960s, becoming established there and
subsequently in the United States in the northern Gulf of Mexico (by 2000) and eastern Florida (2001). With the prevailing
Loop Current flowing clockwise around the Gulf of Mexico and joining the Gulf Stream along eastern Florida, potential transport
of P. punctata along the eastern seaboard of the USA could be facilitated. P. punctata medusae were collected in small numbers along the entire Georgia coast during May–November in 2007 and 2008. Medusa bell
diameters increased both years from ca. 10 cm in May to ca. 33 cm in autumn. Specimens lacked zooxanthellae, as reported for
medusae in the northern Gulf of Mexico and Florida. It is possible that the P. punctata medusae observed were transported from established populations to the south; however, whether or not this species is established
along the Georgia coast has yet to be determined. |
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