FINALIST Compass in the Dark

On a dive at Atlantis Reef, near Miller’s Point in Cape Town, the visibility was less than five metres and it was a disappointing dive. I saw this compass jellyfish at the safety stop at five metres towards the end of the dive. I was swimming slowly after the jellyfish, blacking out the background, to highlight the vivid colours. It’s uncommon to see compass jellyfish on a dive. Enormous increases in Namibia may signify a long-term ecosystem shift. Jellyfish are an indicator of a healthy sea and overfishing may lead to a jellyfish bloom. Soon, our oceans may be populated primarily by jellyfish, as they once were.