Dept. of Geosciences Colloquium: A bird’s eye view on jellyfish dynamics

​Abstract:

Jellyfish are ubiquitous gelatinous predators that influence human livelihood, marine ecosystem structure and functioning, and marine biogeochemical cycles. The different impacts of jellyfish are often associated with the appearance of erratic unpredictable swarms containing very large numbers of individuals. Despite the importance of jellyfish swarms, relatively little is known about their temporal and spatial characteristics, and about the governing processes underlying their formation, sustainment, displacement, and dissolution. Here I will present results from an ongoing research aimed at addressing key aspects of this knowledge gap, through aerial observations from airplanes and drones. I will describe how synergy between these two  platforms can provide complementary information on jellyfish swarms, with airplanes imagery providing the large picture of the swarm as a whole, and drone footage providing detailed information on the dynamics of individual jellyfish within the swarm.

Event Organizer: Dr. Roy Barkan