2015 set to be bumper year for jellyfish in UK waters

Marine Conservation Society says record numbers of creatures being reported, mostly barrel jellyfish but also more exotic species

It is shaping up to be a bumper year for sightings of jellyfish in the UK, according to the Marine Conservation Society, with record numbers reported of barrel jellyfish, typically 40cm (16ins) in diameter, and the potentially dangerous jelly-like Portuguese man o'war found on beaches in Devon and Cornwall.

The marine charity said 2015 was likely to be a record-breaking year for jellyfish, with more than 1,000 sightings reported by members of the public by July, ahead of the peak month of August. In 2013, there were more than 1,000 sightings; by 2014 the figure had risen to more than 1,400, and 2015 is set to exceed those figures.