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Sea Nettle jellyfish are back in the Monterey Bay for the first time in almost four years

Patrick Webster, social media content creator and diver with the Monterey Bay Aquarium, said thousands of jellyfish have been showing up in our waters in areas like Fisherman’s Wharf, San Carlos Beach and the back deck of the aquarium.

“No one really knows what influences where these nettles are showing up, but what we do know is that this year there is a lot more upwelling and a lot more wind and cold water coming up to surface so water in general is cooler which could mean the jellies prefer cooler water or they were down deep and brought up to the surface. No one really knows where baby jellies are found in the wild so it’s part of the mystery they’re still trying to figure out why they show up and why they’re gone,” said Patrick Webster.

According to Webster, the jellyfish would usually show up right around the start of summer, but they’ve been gone for the last few years.

Webster also said anyone swimming in the ocean this weekend should watch out for the sea nettles.

“On the surface down to about ten feet I would just look out for tentacles because they do zap pretty hard. It’s nothing bad, it’s nothing dangerous, but you will feel if you have been tagged by a jelly. They pack quite a punch,” said Webster.

“That doesn’t sound fun,” said Los Angeles resident Elisa Herrera.

Despite the old myth about using urine to treat a jellyfish sting, experts say it is actually better to use hot water. You should scrape the affected area from remaining tentacle and use vinegar along with hot water.

The live jelly cam can be found, here

KION’s Amanda Gomez will have the full story at 5 p.m.

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