THE WORLD'S MOST REMARKABLE JELLYFISH

1. The Giant Jellyfish aka Nomura’s Jellyfish


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These giants of the deep sea, armed with thousands of deadly tentacles, grows up to 2 m and weights up to 200 kg. Since 2005, these life-threatening creatures have been wreaking havoc in the waters off the coast of Japan. These giant jellyfish destroys fishermen nets and poisons all their catches leaving them inedible. These creatures have even managed to sink a ten ton fishing boat (read full article). The overpopulation of these creatures leads to the over consumption of planktons, disturbing the natural food chain of the sea. They are also known for blocking seawater pumps used to cool the reactors in nuclear power stations. The worst is that these menacing beasts causes injuries to and often also fatalities of unfortunate fishermen and swimmers. Scientists have various reasons for the sudden influx of these creatures, however there is no solution yet to combat the burgeoning numbers of these massive, stinging blobs in the Sea of Japan.


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The picture above shows a diver surrounded by hundreds of Numura's jellyfish.



These giant jellyfish destroys fishermen nets and poisons all their catches leaving them inedible. They have also managed to to sink a ten ton fishing boat.

Sources:
scienceray.com
www.environmentalgraffiti.com

2. Mastigias Jellyfish from Jellyfish Lake


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Jellyfish Lake is a marine lake located on Eil Malk island in Palau. Jellyfish lake is somewhat older than 12,000 years. Today the lake is a famous site for snorkeling and snorkeling only, since scuba diving causes disturbance of the toxic layers of the lake and the air bubbles harms the fish. Thousands of golden jellyfish migrate across its surface daily.


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Since the conditions of the lake differs from the conditions of nearby lagoons it caused some species, such as the Mastigias or Golden Jellyfish to evolve differently. This jellyfish – unlike their closest relative the spotted jellyfish that inhabits the lagoons – has no spots, clubs and appendages attached to their tentacles. Although they have stinging cells, the jellyfish are not powerful enough to cause harm to humans.

Mastigias swims in the direction of the sun (counter-clockwise), while swimming their bodies receive heat from the sun and causing them to appear gold. The jellies need sunlight to sustain algae-like zooxanthellae within their tissues; the zooxanthellae in turn help to sustain the jellies. At night, the jellyfish swim down 40 feet and return to the east end to await dawn.


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Aerial view of Jellyfish Lake, Palau, Micronesia


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Sources:
www.nytimes.com
wikipedia.org

3. The Flower-hat Jellyfish


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The flower hat jelly is a rare species of jellyfish occurring primarily in waters off Brazil, Argentina, and southern Japan. They are characterized by lustrous tentacles that coil and adhere to its rim when not in use. The flower hat jelly's bell is translucent and pinstriped with opaque bands, making it easily recognizable.The flower hat jelly can grow to be about 15cm in diameter. Its sting is painful but non-lethal to humans.

wikipedia.org

4. The Crystal Jellyfish


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Crystal Jellyfish are almost invisible in the water. Crystal jellyfish glow when disturbed because of hundreds of tiny, light-producing organs surrounding its outer bell. Osamu Shimomura of Japan and US duo Martin Chalfie and Roger Tsien have won the Nobel Chemistry Prize for a fluorescent protein derived from the jellyfish that has become a vital tool in research.

wikipedia.org

5. The Red Paper Lantern Medusa


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The Red Paper Lantern Medusa (aka-chochin kurage) was first discovered in the Bering Sea in 1913, but details about its distribution and life cycle have long remained a mystery.

The Red Paper Lantern Medusa has a transparent, bell-shaped hood measuring about 10 centimeters in diameter and 17 centimeters from top to bottom, with between 14 and 30 tentacles that extend up to 6 times the length of its body. Inside the transparent hood is a deep red colored mantle that can crumple up or expand like a paper lantern, hence the name. JAMSTEC researcher Dr. Dhugal Lindsay is credited with coming up with the name.

The gelatinous creature is commonly found at depths of between 450 to 900 meters in warm and temperate waters around the world. Observations have been reported in the Antarctic Ocean, but never in the Arctic Ocean.

pinktentacle.com

6. The Atolla Jellyfish


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Atolla is a jellyfish specie that can be found in depths from about 500 to 4,500 meters – where there is still a small amount of sunlight. Where there is light, its red color looks black, making it hard to see. It also produces brilliant bioluminescence often called a 'burglar alarm', possibly to frighten predators.

Sources:
oceanexplorer.noaa.gov
www.pbs.org

7. The Mediterranean Jellyfish


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The Mediterranean jelly or fried egg jellyfish. It is commonly found in the Mediterranean Sea, Aegean Sea and Adriatic Sea. Capable of growing as large as 35 cm in diameter with a bell up to 60 cm, the Mediterranean jelly, unlike many other jellyfish, is capable of autonomous movement without relying on the current.

en.wikipedia.org