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Poster Short Abstract

This project examines the presence and distribution of the non-native freshwater jellyfish Craspedacusta sowerbii in the United Kingdom using citizen science, historical records, and molecular analysis to determine the genetic lineage of the UK's population(s) compared to other occurrences globally.

Poster Abstract

The freshwater jellyfish Craspedacusta sowerbii is a widespread non-native species found in many locations globally. However, due to sporadic appearances of medusae and the cryptic nature of other life cycle stages, a complete picture of its distribution remains uncertain. Native to China, C. sowerbii was first reported in the United Kingdom (UK) in 1880 in the Royal Botanic Garden, Regent's Park, London. Since then, there have been few reports of C. sowerbii in the UK over the last 140 years. Although harmless to people, C. sowerbii may impact other local freshwater zooplankton and potentially fish recruitment, so understanding their abundance and distribution is valuable. This research is compiling reports on the currently known distribution of freshwater jellyfish in the UK by examining the historical literature, museum collections, and citizen science observations. Despite infrequent sightings, we predict that C. sowerbii is more widely distributed in the UK than is currently known.