Time to grab your cameras for the Spot the Jellyfish photographic competition. Seen here is Oceania armata, courtesy of www.oceanfoto.co.uk
The annual photographic competition organised within the Spot the Jellyfish citizen science campaign has been launched yet again this summer, through financial assistance received by the Department of Geosciences at the University of Malta, which runs the campaign, from the International Ocean Institute (IOI). Individuals can submit photographs of jellyfish taken underwater or of beached specimens through the campaign website – www.ioikids.net/jellyfish - until 31 August 2016. When making such a submission, individuals must type the term ‘Competition’ next to their name and must include their contact details. Individuals can submit an unlimited number of photos for the competition, with such photos being displayed digitally for a limited period at the Malta National Aquarium. The best photo will be selected by a panel by mid-September and will be presented with an underwater camera as a prize.
The annual photographic competition organised within the Spot the Jellyfish citizen science campaign has been launched yet again this summer, through financial assistance received by the Department of Geosciences at the University of Malta, which runs the campaign, from the International Ocean Institute (IOI). Individuals can submit photographs of jellyfish taken underwater or of beached specimens through the campaign website – www.ioikids.net/jellyfish - until 31 August 2016. When making such a submission, individuals must type the term ‘Competition’ next to their name and must include their contact details. Individuals can submit an unlimited number of photos for the competition, with such photos being displayed digitally for a limited period at the Malta National Aquarium. The best photo will be selected by a panel by mid-September and will be presented with an underwater camera as a prize.
The Spot the Jellyfish initiative, which is funded currently by the International Ocean Institute (IOI) and by the Malta Tourism Authority (MTA), and which has been running since June 2010, enjoys the support of Nature Trust, Friends of the Earth, EkoSkola, the BlueFlag Malta programme and Sharklab. It is coordinated by Prof. Alan Deidun, being conceived by Prof. Aldo Drago, both from the Geosciences Department. The jellyfish reporting is done by simply matching the sighted jellyfish with a simple visual identification guide, giving the date and time of the sighting, and indicating the number of jellies seen. Sightings can be also reported online, or by sending an email message to ioi-moc@um.edu.mt or to alan.deidun@gmail.com. Strange jellyfish not included on the leaflet should be caught and kept in a bucketful of seawater, prior to contacting staff at the Department of Geosciences for retrieval to attempt a definite identification of the species.