Stygiomedusa
Stygiomedusa | |
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Illustration of Stygiomedusa gigantea | |
Scientific classification ![]() | |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Cnidaria |
Class: | Scyphozoa |
Order: | Semaeostomeae |
Family: | Ulmaridae |
Genus: | Stygiomedusa |
Species: | S. gigantea
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Binomial name | |
Stygiomedusa gigantea (Browne, 1910)[1]
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Synonyms | |
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Stygiomedusa is a genus of giant deep sea jellyfish in the family Ulmaridae.[2] It is monotypic with a single species, Stygiomedusa gigantea, better known as the giant phantom jelly. With only 110 sightings in 110 years, it is a jellyfish that is rarely seen, but believed to be widespread throughout the world, with the exception of the Arctic Ocean.[3][4][5] It is thought to be one of the largest invertebrate predators in the deep sea ecosystem.[6] It can be found as deep as 6,665 metres, but is more common in the midnight zone.[5]
The giant phantom jelly has an umbrella-shaped bell that can be up to a metre wide. It also has four "paddle-like" arms up to 10 metres long, which, as they lack stinging tentacles, may be used instead to trap its prey of plankton and small fish.[5][6] Giant phantom jellies have been observed and filmed off the Pacific coast of the United States by scientists and by ROVs off the coast of Japan and in the Gulf of Mexico.[6][7][8]
Evidence has been reported of a symbiotic relationship existing between giant phantom jellies and Thalassobathia pelagica, a species of ophidiiform fish.[9]
References[]
- ^ "Marine Species Identification Portal : Stygiomedusa gigantea". Species-identification.org. Retrieved 2015-08-19.
- ^ Browne, Edward T. (1907). "Coelentera". In Bell, Jeffrey (ed.). Natural History: Voyage of the S.S. Discovery under Capt. R.F. Scott. Zoology and Botany. Vol. 5. Biodiversity Heritage Library. p. 57. doi:10.5962/bhl.title.18281. OCLC 727233164. Retrieved 2015-08-19.
- ^ "Giant deep sea jellyfish filmed". 2010-04-23. Retrieved 2019-03-17.
- ^ Benfield, Mark C.; Graham, William M. (September 2010). "In situ observations of Stygiomedusa gigantea in the Gulf of Mexico with a review of its global distribution and habitat". Journal of the Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom. 90 (6): 1079–1093. doi:10.1017/S0025315410000536.
- ^ a b c "Giant phantom jelly". MBARI.
- ^ a b c Bourton, Jody (2010-04-23). "BBC - Earth News - Giant deep sea jellyfish filmed in Gulf of Mexico". BBC News. Retrieved 2010-07-08.
- ^ O'Neill, Kara (2015-08-19). "Mysterious alien-like creature spotted in this deep sea footage - but what is it?". Daily Mirror. Retrieved 2015-08-19.
- ^ "An extraordinary deep-sea sighting: The giant phantom jelly". MBARI. 2021-11-30.
- ^ Drazen, Jeffrey C.; Robison, Bruce H. (2004). "Direct observations of the association between a deep-sea fish and a giant scyphomedusa". Marine and Freshwater Behaviour and Physiology. 37 (3): 209–214. doi:10.1080/10236240400006190.
External links[]
- Ulmaridae
- Scyphozoan genera
- Cnidarians of the Pacific Ocean
- Cnidarians of the Caribbean Sea
- Marine fauna of Asia
- Marine fauna of North America
- Marine fauna of the Gulf of California
- Western North American coastal fauna
- Fauna of California
- Animals described in 1910