Palau's jellyfish world diminishing

Jellyfish are diminishing rapidly in their bizarre lake environment in Palau but experts believe it might be natural rather than the result of tourism.

Jellyfish, which have lost their sting, live in lakes here, often in vast numbers and creating a unique environment that attracts tourists and divers to the unusual lakes.

Adalbert Eledui, Director of the Koror State Rangers (KSR), said several studies have been made of the diminishing numbers in the marine lakes.

Two marine biologists, Laura Martin and Mike Dawson, recently studied the three existing jellyfish lakes on Palau, the Ongeim’ 1 Tketau, or the tourist lake, and the Goby and Big Jellyfish lakes.

Eledui said monthly monitoring of the lakes was also being done by the Coral Reef Research Foundation (CRRF), which says that changes in the temperature, salinity, and oxygen of the lakes were causing the disappearance of the jellyfish species.

“We believe that it is not the tourists that are stressing the tourist lake, but it is the natural phenomenon that causes the depletion.

“The temperature, the saltiness of the water which increases the salinity and oxygen levels are depleting it,” said Eledui.

Of the three lakes, it is only the tourist lake that remains open after Palau officials shut down the other two last year.

Koror has 58 marine lakes, but only 28 of them have jellyfish species, which are now the subject of a study by the KSR, CRRF, and the Palau Conservation Society.

Eledui said although activities by tourists may be among the contributing factors, he said this was not major

considering that only a minimal number of tourists are visiting the tourist lake.

Tour operators were also aggressively educating tourists about the sensitivity of the lake.

“Jellyfish species are delicate, pristine and easily disturbed. Therefore, we won’t allow people to go until they get educated about the lake, and tour operators themselves were really helping,” the ranger official said.

Lolita Penland, a CRRF staffer who is doing a monthly monitoring of the lake, said she found small baby jellyfish do not reach normal adult size before they disappear because of the temperature and salinity of the lake.

There are two types of the species in Palau; these are the golden jellyfish and the moon jellyfish, which can be found at the tourist lake.

Eledui said the lake condition was now slowly returning to normal but not as fast as the two other lakes, which will be closed until a comprehensive management plan is done.

A management plan is now being worked out by the KSR, CRRF, the Palau Conservation Society and the director of the United States Nature Conservancy, Andrew Smith. ■

Jellyfish within the lake have lost their sting making it safe to swim with them (Pictures from www.underwatercolours.com)

Hundreds of jellyfish live in Koror's lakes

Palau has two species of jellyfish