02/06/2011 – Half Moon Bay
Yesterday was very dusty as the Shamal (north-westerly) wind was blowing and although I did go birding I did not see much and photography was not possible. As a result I am posting a photo of a Blubber Jellyfish (also known as Blue Blubber Jellyfish) Catostylus cf mosaicus (Quoy & Gaimard, 1824) at Half Moon Bay, Dhahran on the Arabian Gulf taken on 2nd June 2011.
Yesterday was very dusty as the Shamal (north-westerly) wind was blowing and although I did go birding I did not see much and photography was not possible. As a result I am posting a photo of a Blubber Jellyfish (also known as Blue Blubber Jellyfish) Catostylus cf mosaicus (Quoy & Gaimard, 1824) at Half Moon Bay, Dhahran on the Arabian Gulf taken on 2nd June 2011.
Half Moon Bay is a shallow and warm coastal area where there are currently plenty of Blubber Jellyfish present. This is a species, which are often found in swarms, have a translucent sub-hemispherical bell up to 35 centimetres across and eight conical arms without clubs or filamanets. They are quite common in the shallow coastal waters of Half Moon Bay, Dhahran and along the coast southwards to Abu Dhabi (United Arab Emirates) at certain times of the year, mainly the spring and summer. During the day the Blubber Jellyfish swims close to the water surface to obtain sunlight which it converts to energy. They come in various colours from translucent greyish white, like the ones at Half Moon Bay, to blue-green or even bright blue and reddish.