The Australian spotted jellyfish, Phyllorhiza punctata , which first appeared in the Indian River Lagoon in 2001, has reappeared. Sightings include the area from Palm Bay north through Honeymoon Lake, near Pineda. There have also been unconfirmed reports from Merritt Island and as far north as Ponce Inlet in Volusia County. The Australian spotted jellies made headlines in 2000 when they appeared in huge numbers in the northern Gulf of Mexico, clogging the nets of shrimp boats, damaging boat intakes and fishing gear, and consuming enormous amounts of fish eggs, larvae, and other zooplankton near the mouth of the Mississippi River and in Mobile Bay. By some estimates, this jellyfish may have reduced the white shrimp harvest by 25% or more that year. Australian spotted jellyfish grow to an average bell size of 17 inches, with the largest specimens growing to the size of a basketball. The bell is typically white and appears semi-transparent to opaque. White spots are evenly distributed over the bell surface. Frilly oral arms extend beneath the bell and can cause a mildly painful sting to humans. Because the lagoon region provides vital nursery habitat to many species of commercially and recreationally important fish and shellfish, the reappearance of the Australian spotted jellyfish is concerning to biologists, who worry that this invasive species could damage the biological diversity of the lagoon due to its voracious feeding behavior. Studies have shown that a single Australian spotted jellyfish digests its entire gut content every two hours. This requires them to feed almost continuously. An individual may filter 13,000 gallons or more of water per day, and can remove most small particles, including plankton, fish eggs, and larvae from the waters they feed in. It is too early to tell what the ecological implications might be for the lagoon with the reappearance of the Australian spotted jellyfish, but the Indian River Lagoon National Estuary Program and Dr. Kevin Johnson from Florida Institute of Technology are gathering information about the location and extent of this potentially damaging jellyfish bloom. You can assist in this effort by reporting any sighting of this species. Please make note of the location, date and time of your sighting, and provide an estimate of how many jellyfish were observed. You may either call the Indian River Lagoon Program at (321) 984-4950, or e-mail jellyfish@fit.edu. To help with identification, I am posting photos of two native jellyfish – the moon jelly, Aurelia aurita , and the cannonball jelly, Stomolophus meleagris , along with a photo of the Austrailian spotted jellyfish.