Some beaches in Sydney and along the Sunshine Coast have been particularly inundated lately. Gershwin says bluebottles are more commonly found at surf beaches. “Inevitably they’re going to be more common at any beaches getting the wind like that, so surf beaches as opposed to enclosed coves … That’s just a function of how [bluebottles] travel.” Warming oceans have an impact on bluebottle populations too. “With many types of jellyfish, warming water does cause them to grow more, both in terms of personal growth [the organism itself grows faster] as well as population growth. So we end up with more jellyfish overall,” says Gershwin.