Cloudy with a possible sting

PEOPLE are more likely to be stung by potentially deadly jellyfish if they go swimming off Cairns’ beaches compared to anywhere else on the Great Barrier Reef.

Scientists have released a final report investigating a jellyfish “forecast” system, which would provide surf lifesavers and tourism operators with the ability to predict when and where higher concentrations of irukandji and box jellyfish are occurring.

As part of the federally funded study, researchers from the CSIRO, James Cook University and the University of Queensland looked at the distribution of irukandji stings from 1985-2016.

They found three distinct regions where most stings occurred: Cairns, Townsville and the Whitsundays, with Cairns’ beaches recording the most stings (490), among all three destinations’ beaches, islands and offshore reefs.

Scott Condie from the CSIRO said his team found wind direction was also a major contributor to sting frequency.

Slow north-westerly winds were linked to more stings than conditions with strong south-easterly winds.

Tide height was also found to be important, with more stings occurring at low tide.

“These relationships are key to making sting risk forecasts, similar to current fire danger rating forecasts, which can be made available to lifesavers, tourism operators and the general community,” Dr Condie said.

The report’s authors have recommended Cairns be used as the destination for a pilot jellyfish forecasting system.

“An automated system could regularly access the Bureau of Meteorology’s weather forecasting services for information on winds and tides, which could then be converted into forecasts of irukandji risk up to a week in advance,” they wrote.

“This would allow stakeholders to more effectively plan their operations.

“For example, during highrisk periods, life savers could increase the frequency of their net sampling and plan for likely beach closures, while marine tourism vessel operators could potentially target lower risk areas on the Reef.”

The project also resulted in improved box jellyfish monitoring and identification techniques, developed with the assistance of the Yirrganydji Indigenous Land and Sea Ranger Program along with Surf Life Saving Queensland.