A Russian man discovered seven jellyfish while on a boat trip on the Moscow River in the northwest of the Russian capital.
"I was on a boat trip on the Moscow River. We were just going to return when I suddenly spotted a jellyfish floating in the water. I caught one, then another... I netted a total of seven as a result," said Yuri Chernousov.
He said that it was the first time he ever spotted such creatures in the area.
"I was not ready to meet such 'visitors.' I have no idea if they are poisonous or not," he added.
The jellyfish are now being kept in a tank filled with water from the river. Their new owner expects scientists will become interested in the discovery.
"I think some research institution should become interested in this abnormality and give an answer - where did they come from and why? Today we have a jellyfish, tomorrow a shark or any other dangerous animal uncommon for our waters may appear," he said.
This is not the first report of jellyfish caught in Central Russia. Last year a resident of the Moscow Region posted a video and photos of jellyfish in his blog, alleging that his daughter caught them in a local pond.
Some species of jellyfish may be found in fresh water, including the Craspedacusta sowerbyi species, native to Southeast Asia. The colorless creatures, which are less than an inch in diameter and pose no threat to humans, have recently been detected in Europe.
In 2007 the Pravda.ru online newspaper reported that the creatures were found in the Volga River, where they were supposedly brought in ballast water by ships travelling from the south. The paper reported that the jellyfish may spread from Volga to its largest right tributary the Oka, and then to the Oka's tributary, the Moscow River.
MOSCOW, August 3 (RIA Novosti)
