It appears that jellyfish have come to the Bay for the summer... Emmy Stuart, the newest advertising sales rep. to join the SpinSheet and PropTalk team, had an encounter with one such jelly in the Severn River this past weekend.
I had been swimming in the Severn River for about two hours with a lot of other friends. A couple of people had mentioned getting little stings throughout the day, but nothing serious. As I was treading water I brushed what felt like seaweed on my stomach and legs and squeamishly lifted myself back into the boat. As I stood up my friend was staring at me and said, 'You have to get that off of you right now' pointing at my right leg with a jellyfish tentacle wrapped around it. I grabbed a towel and rubbed it off immediately but realized that I must have lowered myself down on this jellyfish because my stomach and right leg started stinging. I ended up with vivid sting marks on my stomach and leg and couldn’t do anything about it until we were back to the dock. I put vinegar on it at home, took a hot shower, and spent the rest of the night itching my irritated stomach and leg. Luckily, when I woke up in the morning the stings were gone. I was not at all expecting to see jellyfish like that in the Severn River, never mind getting one wrapped around me. I hope the jellies find their way out of the river before the summer is over!"
Ouch. Before jumping off the boat this summer, keep an eye out for jellyfish in the water. You can also click to the NOAA Ocean Prediction Center to check the daily forecast for sea nettle encounters in the Bay. The page is updated often but bear in mind it is only a prediction. Sea nettles, or jellyfish, can only live in water with a salinity between 10-16 ppt and a temperature that exceeds 20 degrees C (68 F). The NOAA chart uses these factors to provide fairly accurate forecasts of sea nettle occurrence. Courtesy NOAA. Click for source. However, you may decide to risk the appearance of jellies in favor of a beautiful summer day out on the water. In that case, you'll want to check out the Nettle Net. The Nettle Net provides a jellyfish free swim area right off your boat or pier. The float ring allows the pool to stay above the water and the weighted line in the pool netting allows the interior of the pool to sink to a depth of eight feet.  The fine gauge mesh allows water to enter the pool but keeps jellyfish below and outside the pool. Pool sizes range from eight to 20 feet. For more info click to nojellyfish.com The Nettle Net