Lion's mane jellyfish
Encyclopedia
The lion's mane jellyfish (Cyanea capillata) is the largest known species of jellyfish
. Its range is confined to cold, boreal
waters of the Arctic
, northern Atlantic
, and northern Pacific Ocean
s, seldom found farther south than 42°N latitude
. Similar jellyfish, which may be the same species, are known to inhabit seas near Australia
and New Zealand
. The largest recorded specimen found, washed up on the shore of Massachusetts Bay
in 1870, had a bell (body) with a diameter of 7 in 6 in (2.29 m) and tentacles 120 feet (36.6 m) long.
The taxonomy
of the Cyanea species
is not fully agreed upon; some zoologists have suggested that all species within the genus
should be treated as one. Two distinct taxa, however, occur together in at least the eastern North Atlantic, with the blue jellyfish
(Cyanea lamarckii Péron & Lesueur, 1810) differing in blue (not red) color and smaller size (10–20 cm diameter, rarely 35 cm). Populations in the western Pacific around Japan
are sometimes distinguished as Cyanea nozakii Kisinouye, 1891, or as a race, Cyanea capillata nozakii.
s of larger specimens may trail as long as 30 metres (98.4 ft) or more. These extremely sticky tentacles are grouped into eight clusters, each cluster containing over 100 tentacles, arranged in a series of rows.
At 120 feet (36.6 m) in length, the largest known specimen was longer than a blue whale
and is generally considered the longest known animal in the world. However, in 1864, a Bootlace worm was found washed up on a Scottish shore that was 180 feet (54.9 m). But because bootlace worms can easily stretch to several times their natural length, it is possible the worm did not actually grow to be that length.
The bell is divided into eight lobes, giving it the appearance of an eight-pointed star. An ostentatiously tangled arrangement of colorful arms emanates from the centre of the bell, much shorter than the silvery, thin tentacles which emanate from the bell's subumbrella.
Size also dictates coloration—larger specimens are a vivid crimson to dark purple while smaller specimens grade to a lighter orange or tan. These jellyfish are named for their showy, trailing tentacles reminiscent of a lion
's mane.
for most of their lives but tend to settle in shallow, sheltered bays towards the end of their one-year lifespan. In the open ocean, lion's mane jellyfish act as floating oases for certain species, such as shrimp
, medusafish
, butterfish, harvestfish
, and juvenile prowfish
, providing both a reliable source of food and protection from predators.
Predators of the lion's mane jellyfish include seabird
s, larger fish
such as Ocean sunfish, other jellyfish species, and sea turtle
s. The jellyfish themselves feed mostly on zooplankton
, small fish
, ctenophore
s, and moon jellies.
Like other jellyfish, Lions manes are capable of both sexual reproduction
in the medusa
stage and asexual reproduction
in the polyp
stage. Lion's mane jellyfish have four different stages in their year long life span, a larval stage, a polyp stage, an ephyrae stage and the medusa stage. The female jellyfish carries its fertilized eggs in its tentacle where the eggs grow into larva. When the larva are old enough, the female deposits them on a hard surface where the larva soon grow into polyp
s. The polyps begin to reproduce asexually, creating stacks of small creatures called ephyraes. The individual ephyraes break off the stacks, where they eventually grow into the medusa stage and become full grown jellyfish.
pain and localized redness.
In normal circumstances, and in healthy individuals, their stings are not known to be fatal.
On July 21, 2010, around 150 people are thought to have been stung by the remains of a dead Lion's mane jellyfish that had broken up into countless pieces in Rye
, New Hampshire
in the United States. Considering the size of the species, it is possible that this mass incident was caused by a single specimen.
Jellyfish
Jellyfish are free-swimming members of the phylum Cnidaria. Medusa is another word for jellyfish, and refers to any free-swimming jellyfish stages in the phylum Cnidaria...
. Its range is confined to cold, boreal
Boreal ecosystem
The term boreal is usually applied to ecosystems localized in subarctic and subantarctic zones, although Austral is also used for the latter....
waters of the Arctic
Arctic Ocean
The Arctic Ocean, located in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Arctic north polar region, is the smallest and shallowest of the world's five major oceanic divisions...
, northern Atlantic
Atlantic Ocean
The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's oceanic divisions. With a total area of about , it covers approximately 20% of the Earth's surface and about 26% of its water surface area...
, and northern Pacific Ocean
Pacific Ocean
The Pacific Ocean is the largest of the Earth's oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic in the north to the Southern Ocean in the south, bounded by Asia and Australia in the west, and the Americas in the east.At 165.2 million square kilometres in area, this largest division of the World...
s, seldom found farther south than 42°N latitude
Latitude
In geography, the latitude of a location on the Earth is the angular distance of that location south or north of the Equator. The latitude is an angle, and is usually measured in degrees . The equator has a latitude of 0°, the North pole has a latitude of 90° north , and the South pole has a...
. Similar jellyfish, which may be the same species, are known to inhabit seas near Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
and New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
. The largest recorded specimen found, washed up on the shore of Massachusetts Bay
Massachusetts Bay
The Massachusetts Bay, also called Mass Bay, is one of the largest bays of the Atlantic Ocean which forms the distinctive shape of the coastline of the U.S. state of Massachusetts. Its waters extend 65 miles into the Atlantic Ocean. Massachusetts Bay includes the Boston Harbor, Dorchester Bay,...
in 1870, had a bell (body) with a diameter of 7 in 6 in (2.29 m) and tentacles 120 feet (36.6 m) long.
Taxonomy
Biological classification
Biological classification, or scientific classification in biology, is a method to group and categorize organisms by biological type, such as genus or species. Biological classification is part of scientific taxonomy....
of the Cyanea species
Species
In biology, a species is one of the basic units of biological classification and a taxonomic rank. A species is often defined as a group of organisms capable of interbreeding and producing fertile offspring. While in many cases this definition is adequate, more precise or differing measures are...
is not fully agreed upon; some zoologists have suggested that all species within the genus
Genus
In biology, a genus is a low-level taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms, which is an example of definition by genus and differentia...
should be treated as one. Two distinct taxa, however, occur together in at least the eastern North Atlantic, with the blue jellyfish
Blue jellyfish
Cyanea lamarckii, also known as the Blue jellyfish or Bluefire jellyfish, is a species of jellyfish in the family Cyaneidae. Populations in the western Pacific around Japan are sometimes distinguished as Cyanea nozakii or Cyanea capillata nozakii.-Distribution:This species is found in the pelagic...
(Cyanea lamarckii Péron & Lesueur, 1810) differing in blue (not red) color and smaller size (10–20 cm diameter, rarely 35 cm). Populations in the western Pacific around Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
are sometimes distinguished as Cyanea nozakii Kisinouye, 1891, or as a race, Cyanea capillata nozakii.
Description
Although capable of attaining a bell diameter of 2.5 metres (8.2 ft), these jellyfish can greatly vary in size, those found in lower latitudes are much smaller than their far northern counterparts with bells about 50 centimetres (19.7 in) in diameter. The tentacleTentacle
A tentacle or bothrium is one of usually two or more elongated flexible organs present in animals, especially invertebrates. The term may also refer to the hairs of the leaves of some insectivorous plants. Usually, tentacles are used for feeding, feeling and grasping. Anatomically, they work like...
s of larger specimens may trail as long as 30 metres (98.4 ft) or more. These extremely sticky tentacles are grouped into eight clusters, each cluster containing over 100 tentacles, arranged in a series of rows.
At 120 feet (36.6 m) in length, the largest known specimen was longer than a blue whale
Blue Whale
The blue whale is a marine mammal belonging to the suborder of baleen whales . At in length and or more in weight, it is the largest known animal to have ever existed....
and is generally considered the longest known animal in the world. However, in 1864, a Bootlace worm was found washed up on a Scottish shore that was 180 feet (54.9 m). But because bootlace worms can easily stretch to several times their natural length, it is possible the worm did not actually grow to be that length.
The bell is divided into eight lobes, giving it the appearance of an eight-pointed star. An ostentatiously tangled arrangement of colorful arms emanates from the centre of the bell, much shorter than the silvery, thin tentacles which emanate from the bell's subumbrella.
Size also dictates coloration—larger specimens are a vivid crimson to dark purple while smaller specimens grade to a lighter orange or tan. These jellyfish are named for their showy, trailing tentacles reminiscent of a lion
Lion
The lion is one of the four big cats in the genus Panthera, and a member of the family Felidae. With some males exceeding 250 kg in weight, it is the second-largest living cat after the tiger...
's mane.
Ecology
A coldwater species, this jellyfish cannot cope with warmer waters. The jellyfish are pelagicPelagic zone
Any water in a sea or lake that is not close to the bottom or near to the shore can be said to be in the pelagic zone. The word pelagic comes from the Greek πέλαγος or pélagos, which means "open sea". The pelagic zone can be thought of in terms of an imaginary cylinder or water column that goes...
for most of their lives but tend to settle in shallow, sheltered bays towards the end of their one-year lifespan. In the open ocean, lion's mane jellyfish act as floating oases for certain species, such as shrimp
Shrimp
Shrimp are swimming, decapod crustaceans classified in the infraorder Caridea, found widely around the world in both fresh and salt water. Adult shrimp are filter feeding benthic animals living close to the bottom. They can live in schools and can swim rapidly backwards. Shrimp are an important...
, medusafish
Medusafish
Medusafishes are a family, Centrolophidae, of perciform fishes. They are found in temperate and tropical waters throughout the world.Young Icichthys lockingtoni are abundant in the coastal waters of the north Pacific, where they are often found in association with jellyfish, which provides them...
, butterfish, harvestfish
Harvestfish
The harvestfish , also occasionally known by a few local names as star butter fish or sometimes even simply as butterfish , is a marine, benthopelagic, circular-shaped and deep-bodied fish classified in the family Stromateidae of butterfishes...
, and juvenile prowfish
Prowfish
Prowfish are subtropical perciform marine fish found in the North Pacific. They are the only member of their family, Zaproridae...
, providing both a reliable source of food and protection from predators.
Predators of the lion's mane jellyfish include seabird
Seabird
Seabirds are birds that have adapted to life within the marine environment. While seabirds vary greatly in lifestyle, behaviour and physiology, they often exhibit striking convergent evolution, as the same environmental problems and feeding niches have resulted in similar adaptations...
s, larger fish
Fish
Fish are a paraphyletic group of organisms that consist of all gill-bearing aquatic vertebrate animals that lack limbs with digits. Included in this definition are the living hagfish, lampreys, and cartilaginous and bony fish, as well as various extinct related groups...
such as Ocean sunfish, other jellyfish species, and sea turtle
Sea turtle
Sea turtles are marine reptiles that inhabit all of the world's oceans except the Arctic.-Distribution:...
s. The jellyfish themselves feed mostly on zooplankton
Zooplankton
Zooplankton are heterotrophic plankton. Plankton are organisms drifting in oceans, seas, and bodies of fresh water. The word "zooplankton" is derived from the Greek zoon , meaning "animal", and , meaning "wanderer" or "drifter"...
, small fish
Fish
Fish are a paraphyletic group of organisms that consist of all gill-bearing aquatic vertebrate animals that lack limbs with digits. Included in this definition are the living hagfish, lampreys, and cartilaginous and bony fish, as well as various extinct related groups...
, ctenophore
Ctenophore
The Ctenophora are a phylum of animals that live in marine waters worldwide. Their most distinctive feature is the "combs", groups of cilia that they use for swimming, and they are the largest animals that swim by means of cilia – adults of various species range from a few millimeters to in size...
s, and moon jellies.
Behavior and reproduction
Lion's mane jellyfish remain mostly very near the surface at no more than 20 m depth, their slow pulsations weakly driving them forwards; they depend on ocean currents whereby the jellies travel great distances. The jellyfish are most often spotted during the late summer and autumn, when they have grown to a large size and the currents begin to sweep them closer to shore.Like other jellyfish, Lions manes are capable of both sexual reproduction
Sexual reproduction
Sexual reproduction is the creation of a new organism by combining the genetic material of two organisms. There are two main processes during sexual reproduction; they are: meiosis, involving the halving of the number of chromosomes; and fertilization, involving the fusion of two gametes and the...
in the medusa
Medusa (biology)
In biology, a medusa is a form of cnidarian in which the body is shaped like an umbrella, in contrast with polyps. Medusae vary from bell-shaped to the shape of a thin disk, scarcely convex above and only slightly concave below...
stage and asexual reproduction
Asexual reproduction
Asexual reproduction is a mode of reproduction by which offspring arise from a single parent, and inherit the genes of that parent only, it is reproduction which does not involve meiosis, ploidy reduction, or fertilization. A more stringent definition is agamogenesis which is reproduction without...
in the polyp
Polyp
A polyp in zoology is one of two forms found in the phylum Cnidaria, the other being the medusa. Polyps are approximately cylindrical in shape and elongated at the axis of the body...
stage. Lion's mane jellyfish have four different stages in their year long life span, a larval stage, a polyp stage, an ephyrae stage and the medusa stage. The female jellyfish carries its fertilized eggs in its tentacle where the eggs grow into larva. When the larva are old enough, the female deposits them on a hard surface where the larva soon grow into polyp
Polyp
A polyp in zoology is one of two forms found in the phylum Cnidaria, the other being the medusa. Polyps are approximately cylindrical in shape and elongated at the axis of the body...
s. The polyps begin to reproduce asexually, creating stacks of small creatures called ephyraes. The individual ephyraes break off the stacks, where they eventually grow into the medusa stage and become full grown jellyfish.
Sting and human contact
Most encounters cause temporarypain and localized redness.
In normal circumstances, and in healthy individuals, their stings are not known to be fatal.
On July 21, 2010, around 150 people are thought to have been stung by the remains of a dead Lion's mane jellyfish that had broken up into countless pieces in Rye
Rye, New Hampshire
Rye is a town in Rockingham County, New Hampshire, United States. The population was 5,298 at the 2010 census.-History:The first settlement in New Hampshire, originally named Pannaway, was established in 1623 at Odiorne's Point. The first settler in Rye was William Berry...
, New Hampshire
New Hampshire
New Hampshire is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. The state was named after the southern English county of Hampshire. It is bordered by Massachusetts to the south, Vermont to the west, Maine and the Atlantic Ocean to the east, and the Canadian...
in the United States. Considering the size of the species, it is possible that this mass incident was caused by a single specimen.
In popular culture
- The Lion's mane jellyfish appears in the Sherlock HolmesSherlock HolmesSherlock Holmes is a fictional detective created by Scottish author and physician Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. The fantastic London-based "consulting detective", Holmes is famous for his astute logical reasoning, his ability to take almost any disguise, and his use of forensic science skills to solve...
short story The Adventure of the Lion's ManeThe Adventure of the Lion's Mane"The Adventure of the Lion's Mane", one of the 56 Sherlock Holmes short stories written by British author Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, is one of 12 stories in the cycle collected as The Case Book of Sherlock Holmes. It is notable for being narrated by Holmes himself, instead of by Dr...
published in The Case-Book of Sherlock HolmesThe Case-Book of Sherlock HolmesThe Case-Book of Sherlock Holmes is the final collection of Sherlock Holmes stories by Arthur Conan Doyle. Originally published in 1927, it contains stories published between 1921 and 1927....
. Holmes discovers at the end of the story that the true killer of a school professor who died shortly after going swimming was actually this jellyfish. Suspicion was originally laid upon the professor's rival in love, until the latter was similarly attacked (he survived, although badly stung). In the context of the story, it is only because the school professor has a weak heart that he succumbs, as is confirmed by the survival of the second victim. - Lion's mane jellyfish are an adoptable animal in the MicrosoftMicrosoft Game StudiosMicrosoft Studios is the video game production wing for Microsoft, responsible for the development and publishing of games for the Xbox, Xbox 360, Games for Windows and Windows Phone platforms. They were established in 2002 as Microsoft Game Studios to coincide with the release of the Xbox, before...
video game: Zoo Tycoon: Marine ManiaZoo Tycoon: Marine ManiaZoo Tycoon: Marine Mania is an expansion pack for Zoo Tycoon, which includes aquatic animals and themed buildings.Players can create and manage underwater exhibits or merge aquatic tanks with traditional land habitats. Interactive tutorials and virtual marine specialists are available to help...
.