In the summers of 1988, 1989, and 1991 large quantities of sticky mucilaginous masses occurred in the Adriatic Sea, particularly in its northern part. The mucilage phenomenon has been studied by scientists during past events, but the previous scientific reports back to the thirties of this century. Great efforts have been made since 1988 to understand the nature of the phenomenon. Although remarkable scientific results have been achieved, many questions related to such a complex phenomenon have remained open. In this paper results and hypotheses related to the chemical and biological composition, causes, triggering mechanisms, and responsible organisms for the mucilage phenomenon are briefly reviewed. Finally, some suggestions for future researches are proposed.