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Swarm of Giant Jellyfish Capsize 10-Ton Trawler

Hugh Pickens writes "The Telegraph reports that the Japanese trawler Diasan Shinsho-maru has capsized off the coast of China, as its three-man crew dragged their net through a swarm of giant jellyfish (which can grow up to six feet in diameter and travel in packs) and tried to haul up a net that was too heavy. The crew was thrown into the sea when the vessel capsized, but the three men were rescued by another trawler. Relatively little is known about Nomura's jellyfish, such as why some years see thousands of the creatures floating across the Sea of Japan on the Tsushima Current, but last year there were virtually no sightings. In 2007, there were 15,500 reports of damage to fishing equipment caused by the creatures. Experts believe that one contributing factor to the jellyfish becoming more frequent visitors to Japanese waters may be a decline in the number of predators, which include sea turtles and certain species of fish. 'Jellies have likely swum and swarmed in our seas for over 600 million years,' says scientist Monty Graham of the Dauphin Island Sea Lab in Alabama. 'When conditions are right, jelly swarms can form quickly. They appear to do this for sexual reproduction.'"

26 of 227 comments (clear)

  1. Re:I don't mean to Troll by 2.7182 · · Score: 5, Funny

    No. Let's be clear about this. These jellyfish has bred near a nuclear reactor, and in addition to being intelligent, are quite evil. They did it. And they did it on purpose.

  2. Mystery solved by Oyjord · · Score: 3, Funny

    "Relatively little is known about Nomura's jellyfish, such as why some years see thousands of the creatures floating across the Sea of Japan on the Tsushima Current, but last year there were virtually no sightings."

    Godzilla had the munchies?

  3. Soon: by DemonBeaver · · Score: 5, Funny

    Capsizing Jellyfish: The Hentai

    --
    This message was brought to you by Sarcasm and Troll Feeders United (STFU)
  4. Hey there! FlashMob4Jellyfish is using Twitter by jms · · Score: 5, Funny

    "Relatively little is known about Nomura's jellyfish, such as why some years see thousands of the creatures floating across the Sea of Japan on the Tsushima Current, but last year there were virtually no sightings."

    Hey there! FlashMob4Jellyfish is using Twitter

    WhN? 2day. Where? Sea of Japan. What? Jam as many of us into
    a fishing net and capsize the boat.
    4:48 PM Oct 9th from ocean

  5. Re:I don't think we're ready for this jelly by PitaBred · · Score: 5, Funny

    But then where will we get eel-eating gorillas? I mean, snake-eating ones are a doddle, but eel-eating ones? Plus, do the eel-eating gorillas die over the winter?

  6. Re:I don't mean to Troll by mctk · · Score: 5, Funny

    Mod parent trawl.

    --
    Paul Grosfield - the quicker picker upper.
  7. Oh no... there goes Tokyo... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Funny

    Is there any doubt that these giant, radioactive jellyfish are headed for Japan? Fortunately, they probably can't move very well on land. so Tokyo Tower is safe.

    1. Re:Oh no... there goes Tokyo... by Bigjeff5 · · Score: 2, Funny

      You've obviously never seen giant, radioactive jellyfish before. They easily transition from water to air and hover over the city, soaking up the juice from the power lines (they use it to help them hover) before floating down to Tokyo Tower for some tenticle-based destruction. Oh and pr0n. Wherever there are tenticles in Japan, there's tenticle pr0n.

      --
      Security is mostly a superstition... Avoiding danger is no safer in the long run than outright exposure. - Helen Keller
  8. We must take action immediately! by mister_playboy · · Score: 2, Funny

    I move to petition Congress to recommission the USS Iowa and deploy it to the Sea of Japan.

    Jellyfish born near China and hanging out near Japan will not be open to English-language negotiations, so we must instead negotiate with 16 inch guns. They will surely give in to a show of force... everyone knows jellyfish are spineless!

    --
    Do what thou wilt shall be the whole of the Law ::: Love is the law, love under will
  9. Is this a remake? by magusxxx · · Score: 2, Funny

    Great...can't wait for the Syfy movie. *rolling eyes*

    --
    Care killed the cat, but satisfaction brought it back.
  10. Obligitory Jokes by flyneye · · Score: 5, Funny

    'When conditions are right, jelly swarms can form quickly. They appear to do this for sexual reproduction.'"

                Perhaps genetic experimentation to produce K.Y. Jellyfish would aid this.

    --
    *Repent!Quit Your Job!Slack Off!The World Ends Tomorrow and You May Die!
    1. Re:Obligitory Jokes by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Funny

      Their toxins cause numbing, so I'm not sure how much help that would be.

  11. Re:I don't mean to Troll by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Funny

    In 2007, there were 15,500 reports of damage to fishing equipment caused by the creatures.

    In other news: Last year several thousands of SUVs were damaged by children who, for some reasons, were not constrained by their parents to stay inside all the time and instead failed to stay at the proper speed to move smoothly with the traffic. Due to the excellent structural protection from the SUVs their drivers did not suffer major physical injuries.

    It's not nearly as bad as you make it out to be. If you get the really big tires the little brats never even mess up the paint. Oh sure, sometimes a bicycle will damage a tire sidewall, but that's what roadside assistance if for, right?

  12. Re:Don't kill predators by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 3, Funny

    CLUB HIM! CLUB HIM! The barbie-que is already fired up. You club him, I'll clean him!! He'll look good beside the eels, the shark steaks, and the dog steaks! I hear geek tastes like pork! Oh, I'm so excited, CLUB HIM!

  13. So, that's why it sank so easily... by karlandtanya · · Score: 4, Funny

    I thought it sounded kinda small for a commercial vessel.

    It was a Chibi-trawler.

    --
    "Reality is that which, when you stop believing in it, it doesn't go away." - Philip K. Dick
  14. Re:I don't mean to Troll by Stupid+McStupidson · · Score: 2, Funny

    I'm a jellyfish overlord, you insensitive clod!

  15. Re:I don't think we're ready for this jelly by Culture20 · · Score: 2, Funny

    Well duh. Fish Jelly is the worst idea since slug paste.

  16. Re:I don't mean to Troll by jdfox · · Score: 4, Funny

    Re:I don't mean to Troll (Score: 15,500, Bait)

  17. Re:I don't mean to Troll by spongman · · Score: 4, Funny

    in other news visitors from the middle east were tragically killed when the twin towers of the world trade center blocked the path of the jet they were traveling on. the pentagon building and a field in Pennsylvania were responsible for similar incidents.

  18. Re:'Sexual' reproduction? by tomhath · · Score: 4, Funny

    As opposed to what? Cloning?

    No, as opposed to swarming for some other reason such as protection from predators, attacking Japanese fishermen, or as part of their agile software development process.

  19. Its a potent of future diaster by physburn · · Score: 2, Funny
    Japanese nuclear radiation has stirred up Godzilla into an attack on one of the Cephalopod kings of the Major Arcana. The world is doomed. The only question is how we will die. Screaming Mad from Cthulhu, or Alien inversion from Waking Kraken.

    ---

    Cryptozoology Feed @ Feed Distiller

  20. Re:I don't mean to Troll by sstern · · Score: 5, Funny

    Only an Iron Chef can save us. Send for Morimoto.

    --
    --Steve
  21. Re:Don't kill predators by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Funny

    You're commenting on the quality of meat, yet you mentioned the word "ketchup".
    Methinks you haven't eaten meat outside of a McDonalds...

  22. Re:'Sexual' reproduction? by ThatsNotPudding · · Score: 2, Funny

    Actually, yes. Jellyfish normally asexually reproduce; essentially cloning. They can also sexually reproduce.

    Well, that's just being greedy.

  23. Re:Don't kill predators by 2.7182 · · Score: 2, Funny

    My wifes a vegatarian and I keep telling her that she can eat beef, since it's made of grass...

  24. Re:I don't mean to Troll by thisisaccount2 · · Score: 2, Funny

    I mod things as funny so others can yell "mods on crack".

    My use of +1 Funny is clearly superior to your own.