|
The Jellytrack project |
|
Project participants |
|
The Barrel jellyfish |
|
Several jellyfish have now been tracked with small GPS units while equipped with accelerometers (to measure their behaviour in “3D”). This will help us answer several questions: how do they swim? Can they swim fast? Can they swim against the current? Do they all swim together in the same direction? |
|
First results |
|
Connectivity of jellyfish populations: “Jellytrack” |
|
(1) Testing the equipment from the boat (2) Carefully approaching the jellyfish as it can swim away much faster than you would think! (3) Deploying the tag by attaching a cable tie around the peduncle that joins the swimming bell to the oral arms of the jellyfish (4) An accelerometer and a float (to ensure neutral buoyancy) are directly fixed to the cable tie while the GPS tag attached to the cable tie with a monofilament tether floats at the surface and transmits the location of the jellyfish. |
|
1 |
|
2 |
|
3 |
|
4 |
|
5 |
|
(5) Jellyfish swimming freely with its equipment |
|
(6) Genetic samples were also collected and will allow us to determine the connexion between jellyfish populations. A little piece (1 cm3) of the oral arm is enough to perform genetic analysis. |
|
6 |
|
A. 2h-depth profile of a free-ranging jellyfish. The jellyfish dove up to 4m but spent also lots of time very close to the surface where it was swimming on its side. B. The accelerometer allowed us to record the pulses of the jellyfish bell when swimming near the surface. There is about one pulse per second. |
|
1 bell pulse |
|
Jellyfish swimming at the surface |
|
Jellyfish diving to 4m |
|
Track of one Barrel jellyfish for 3 hours in Carmathen Bay. Two areas of very tortuous movements (black circles) are of particular interest as they may be associated with the jellyfish foraging on plankton. |
|
Phone: +44 (1792) 205678 ext 4614 |
|
To contact us: |
