The Northern Climate Observer

The Northern
Climate Observer

Jellyfish Fields - In September of 2016 David Osterback was off the east side of Popof Island, Alaska fishing for salmon on this 58 foot purse seiner, the Pacific Maid. He had noticed an abundance of jellyfish in the area, Chrysaora melanaster the northern sea nettle which is native to the North Pacific. Nothing from the surface however, could have prepared him for the huge quantities that drifted below. As David tells it, "I have been fishing in this area my whole life, and we have never seen so many that we could not fish there anymore. They were fouling the nets and even causing a danger to the boat." Indeed there were so many jellyfish that they were clogging the scupper holes on deck, preventing the water from draining and making the boat top heavy. The crew proceeded to shovel the mass of jellies over the side as quickly as possible. That was the first observation we had received in LEO Network speaking to the direct impacts of jellyfish on commercial fishing. A similar event was documented in Saltnes, Østfold, Norway in mid June. As reported by NRK, shrimpers already challenged by a poor season, were unable to trawl because the nets were quickly fouled by dense schools of glass jellyfish. With jellyfish blooms being reported around the North, scientist and local observers are questioning how jellyfish populations are changing and what it means for the marine ecosystem, fisheries and tourism. You can read about the Invasion of Oslo Fjord, and also some very large lion's mane jellyfish in this edition. Mike Brubaker - Editor

	Manet invasion in the Oslo Fjord Saltnes, Østfold, Norway Sara Vilde Solås, Anne Ognedal / NRK / June 11, 2020 Large menger glass jellyfish in the Oslo fjord cause problems for both beachgoers and shrimp fishermen. The whole trawl was full before it reached the bottom where the shrimp are. Read article on NRK
	Giant 6ft lion's mane jellyfish spotted Colwyn Bay Beach in Wales Colwyn Bay, Wales, United Kingdom William Cole / Mail Online / June 25, 2020 Dom Faux, 42, and daughter Eryn were enjoying a walk on Colwyn Bay Beach, north Wales when they came across a huge lion's mane jellyfish measuring six feet across. Read article on Mail Online
	Tuktoyaktuk working with feds to address climate change and eroding shoreline Tuktoyaktuk, Northwest Territories, Canada CBC / July 10, 2020 "If we can protect the shoreline for another 30 years, it will give us time to move inland because we all can't up and leave tomorrow," Mayor Elias said. Read article on CBC
	Most electrified storm in years Red Deer, Alberta, Canada Josh Hall / rdnewsnow.com / June 13, 2020 A large chunk of Alberta, particularly in the south and central regions, were throttled by severe thunderstorm... Read article on rdnewsnow.com
	Nearly 300 Wildfires in Siberia Amid Record Warm Weather Sakha, Russia Maria Antonova for AFP / The Moscow Times / July 12, 2020 Russia's Aerial Forest Protection Service is trying to suppress 136 fires over 43,000 hectares. Firefighters are using explosives to contain the fires and seeding clouds with silver iodide to encourage rain. Read article on The Moscow Times
	Wild Boars Appear in Moscow Parks, Officials Warn Moscow, Moscow, Russia The Moscow Times / The Moscow Times / July 6, 2020 If you meet one don't look it in the eye. Read article on The Moscow Times
	Miners hunting for metals to battery cars threaten Sámi reindeer herder's homeland Thomas Nilsen / The Independent Barents Observer / July 9, 2020 Tuomas Siilasjoki and Minna Näkkäläjärvi say they were taken by surprise when a mobile drill rig one day appeared in the horizon. Nobody had asked them about exploring for minerals inside their siida, a reindeer foraging area, in northern Finland. Read article on The Independent Barents Observer
	Haven't expected fewer plums in ten years Nedstrand, Tysvær Tale Hauso, Valentina Baisotti, Rosa Iren Villalobos, Mari Rollag Evensen / NRK / July 8, 2020 You have to be early if you want plums this year. The cause is cold in flowering. It almost snowed when it was flowering. The bees were barely out, and we can see the result here. Read article on NRK

The Northern Climate Observer is published by the Center for Climate and Health. We track news coverage from across the circumpolar north and provide readers with a curated roundup of climate change related events. Thank you for reading our newsletter and for paying attention to our changing world.

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Northern Climate Observer

The Northern Climate Observer is published weekly by the Center for Climate and Health. We track news from across the circumpolar north and provide readers with a curated roundup of climate change related events.

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Northern Climate Observer

The Northern
Climate Observer