Montana Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks

Montana girl's rare freshwater jellyfish find raises ecological questions

A 10-year-old girl and her father reported dozens of Craspedacusta sowerbii, the common freshwater jellyfish, near Canyon Ferry Reservoir in Montana, prompting sample collection by the state’s invasive species team and continued monitoring. While harmless to humans, ecologists caution about potential ecological impacts of this eastern Asian invader, which Montana has only rarely seen since its first 2009 sighting.