Palau's Jellyfish Lake - Millions Of Jellyfish

Located on Eil Malk Island, Palau's Jellyfish Lake has millions of jellyfish, therefore, is considered to be a real paradise for them. The lake is without a doubt is one of the most extraordinary lakes in the world. With the total area of only 0,057 km2, the lake is home to a great variety of jellyfish, the number of which there is exceed 15 million! Why is this place paradise, you ask? Everything is simple, they have no enemies there, so they live and enjoy their life.

Jellyfish Lake has a small size of 460 meters in length and 160 meters in width, while the depth of the unique lake is about 50 meters.

The water body was formed over 12 million years ago when the collision of two tectonic plates on the border with the ocean had formed a depression into which not only salt water seeped through the pores in the limestone but also some small sea creatures, including jellyfish. Predatory fish, in turn, were unable to flow through these pores.

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The water in the Jellyfish Lake is divided into two layers: the upper, which is saturated with oxygen and is home to all its inhabitants, and the lower, which is at a depth of 15 meters and is saturated with ammonia, hydrogen sulfide, and phosphorus. At that depth, the oxygen content is almost zero. However, the most interesting thing is that the upper layer never mixes with the lower.

At the button of the lake, there only some microorganisms can survive, and any attempts by the divers to swim at great depths can cause serious intoxication. Scuba diving is prohibited there even for another reason, the bubbles resulting from it can get under the dome of the jellyfish, thereby killing them, however, swimming is not.

Jellyfish Lake is separated from the ocean by a strip of land about 200 meters and is provided by a small tributary of fresh water through the tunnels connecting the lake to the ocean.

The lake is a natural body of water with slightly salty water, where there are only 2 species of jellyfish, that is to say, Mastigias Papua and Aurelia. For the year of its existence, thanks to the absence of natural enemies, they have considerably multiplied in numbers. Researchers estimated that their number is approximately 15 million.

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What is interesting is that due to the lack of enemies and a small quantity of food, they have become vegetarians, as their stinging cells on the tentacles are atrophied, therefore, they are completely harmless to people, allowing tourists to freely swim among them, while not afraid to get "burns."

At the entrance to the Jellyfish Lake, there is a berth where you can change clothes, relax and leave your things before you go into the water.

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Location: Eil Malk, Rock Islands, Palau