Scyphozoan Jelly fish Diversity in the Gulf of Mannar and Palk bay with an account on the Invasive Jelly fish Phyllorhiza punctata

Swarming dynamics of scyphozoan jelly fishes have great in-fluence on the coastal ecosystem, wherein some scyphozoan are filter feeder and others are piscivores/carnivores. The summer swarming of jellyfishes along the Gulf of Mannar and Palk Bay coast was monitored since 2013 during the months from April to September, and different species of jelly fishes could be recorded in the coastal waters. Furthermore the beach seine operation hauls in several tons of jellyfishes during their operation along this coast, creating a nuisance situation in the fishing operation. Hence the present study was attempted to document the different species of jelly fishes which are found in the coastal waters of Gulf of Mannar and Palk Bay