JellyFish in the Gulf

[Missdirected]

Found a post of mine from last year, if anyone cares to have a look at it there are pics to go along with it. http://www.scubaboard.com/forums/3859151-post16.html

 

[Bob]

That looks to be about the size of the ones we saw last sumer. Nasty things. almtree: Bob

 

[Echoo]

I did not notice tennicals on them how ever he did get stung by something. I thought it was at the Vet that he got stung I coulda been wrong tho. That one in the pic is what I saw at the Blackthorn tho.

And there was the smaller strings? had a bunch of little jellys atatched I awas thinking it was some sort of egg pod? they were like 6-8 inches long and had about 20-40 little brown spots the size of a Pin head. with little Jellys about the size of a small pencil eraser.

Would be nice if you can brighten it up. If it was taken on the first dive the sun was playing peeka boo with the clouds. we had 40+ vis but not very bright

 

[Echoo]

was certainly not a big nasty like the one in your post. This is typical of the ones that I was used to seeing in the summer before I quit diveing a couple years back. I remember them being real thick at times and did sting but not real bad. just a little red spot for a couple hours.

 

[TMet]

I'll have Jamie (wife) brighten it and I'll re-post it tomorrow. I think 2 strobes are in order from now on. First attempt at photography underwater. I also saw a couple that were clear, almost looked like a sandwich bag floating underwater.

 

[TMet]

Here is a lighter pic. We'll get the rest of the pics from the trip up tomorrow. It was a great time.

 

[InstructorMike]

Thanks for Jelly INFO everyone. Taking out Students like I did today and almost every week I worry a lot about jellies. Took students to Vet and Vet plane today. GOOD news, no report of jellies.

(pictures of them in a day or two on web site @ Scuba Dive Florida - Tanks-A-Lot Dive Charters - Diving Tampa, Clearwater, St.Petersburg - Dive Trip Charter Boat under trip photo's dated today)

BAD NEWS. The 4 GG on the Vet Saturday and the 3 GG on the VET plane Sunday were ALL Gone today. Do not know why because it was a Thursday and bait was still there. Sometimes with heavy diving they move off. Something I see a lot of on a Monday but not a Thursday.



Hope no one shot them. Strange for ALL of them to be gone at once....

I have charters the 6th, 7th, 9th, 10th, 11th and 12th so I am sure I will stop by there at least 2 or 3 times next week. If anyone else see's them there please let me know. I am a little worried why they are ALL gone at once.

Stinging Cauliflower are Very orange and can be Very big. Looks like a bunch of hair or a wig under it. (Good pictures in Paul Humann books) While Kingfishing two years ago saw Thousands and Thousands of them. Filled the water. Looked like you could get out and walk on them. They were 12 inches to almost 3 feet wide. Reported them to Jenifer Wheaton who is in charge of anything in fresh or Salt water for the State. (She was the one I worked with when we had the Red tide a few years ago, very, very smart lady) They were State wide.

In my 30 + years of diving in the Gulf don't ever remember hearing the name or seeing a Pink Meanie. Looking forward to learning about them. Neat name.

Will keep a eye out for additonal photos.

Also if any one sees red tide (or dead floating fish) Please let me know lat and long. I collect samples for the state. One of my divers got the first picture of a Christmas Tree worm last week. I have not seen one since the red tide.

Thanks.

 

[Echoo]

We were at the vet about 3:30pm on Tues and at least 2 of the Jews were there. We did not see them but we did hear them. They seemed to be taking extra care not to be seen. The one I was near started popping and I was not really even that close to the hold he was in.

 

[Missdirected]

TMet yea your jelly looks fairly harmless. I do want to keep this thread up in case anything nasty is spotted out there. I sure would have like to have known about the nettles at Venice last year before I splashed :shocked2: I'd be willing to bet a $20 Chugger/Mike would have like to have known as well. <snicker>

 

[InstructorMike]

We were at the vet about 3:30pm on Tues and at least 2 of the Jews were there. We did not see them but we did hear them. They seemed to be taking extra care not to be seen. The one I was near started popping and I was not really even that close to the hold he was in.

Thanks, Use to hate GG for 30 years when I had a commercial lic and all I did was shoot fish and catch lobster. Always a pain in the Butt, trying to eat my fish or lobster. I have seen how they can clean a ledge out of all it"s lobster over night. They just swim up to the lobster and inhale them. I watched a video where one ate 10 big lobster in a row. They love lobster like the rest of us. I have noticed over the years when a GG moves into one of my ledges that is loaded with fish that the fish move off if it pretty quick. I am talking my Good shooting ledges where there will be 20 to 50 big (10 pounds or bigger) fish on it.

Kind of like the way Bull sharks leave about a minute before the tigers come in and even the tigers leave when the Whites come in or the smaller Whites leave before the Biggers whites come in. NO one wants to hang around and be the lower part of the food chain.

Had one GG take a kicking 40 pound cobia I free shafted out of my hands and swallow it on the Tarpon Tug. One of my friends shot a GG years ago and noted it was skinny. There was a turtle stuck in its mouth that it tried to swallow. Jim, The owner of Ocean Sports last week told me he had one the other day stalking his shot fish.

Where I sold my fish and lobster in the Keys the GG meat sold more per pound then the grouper did. I have a way of cooking it I learned from my dad where it taste just like the fresh lobster I catch. Think of a 20 pound chunk of lobster meat sitting in front of you with a bowl of butter!

I hope in these hard times no one is taking them for food.

TODAY with the charter business I LOVE THEM. BIG ticket draw for my divers. I now get a LOT more special request to dive the barges once the divers have seen our pictures and video we posted to our web site Scuba Dive Florida - Tanks-A-Lot Dive Charters - Diving Tampa, Clearwater, St.Petersburg - Dive Trip Charter Boat of the GG there.

The last three weeks when the bait came in the GG followed.

When the water was cold and no bait we only saw that one smaller Yellow GG on the Sheridan Tug. There is a Cute Picture of him sneaking a peak at us thru the port Hole window of the Sheridan on our Trip Photos page. The last time I was in the water there I saw 4 GG including one very large dark one over 300 pounds.

The biggest GG I ever seen in shore were on the Mexican Pride about 30 years ago. The Big boys back then hung out on the stern section. All the old time divers remembers the story of one of the divers they lost on the Pride that they thought was eaten by a Very large GG they saw that dive. The other divers went right back down and found his mask and stuff but never the diver.

Commercial divers fear them while working deep. The care less about sharks. That family of fish, grouper/GG will try to swallow anything that moves. Ever keep one in a fish tank? Had on 3 inch grouper swallow a fish the same size as him. (a $ 100.00 fish he swallowed!!) Half the fish stuck out of it mouth for days.

The biggest GG I ever saw was about 25 years ago on one of our 3 day trips on a commercial boat to shoot fish in the Middle Grounds. That one I guessed to be close to 800 pounds. It made a 300 pound GG look VERY small.

The ledge Boulders had two on it last week and we counted 4 on the Vet Barge and Two on the Vet airplane barge also last Weekend.

Several years ago on the barges, right after the Ban on taking GG there was a shooters that put Golf Balls on the end of his shafts and were using the GG for target practice. Do not know why. Maybe to scare them off.

I am sure that is NOT the problem now.. (I hope)

HOPE the GG will be back. My divers love seeing them.

PLEASE post of any you see.