NO. 31 ;Species explorer -Moon Jellyfish - Aurelia Aurita

Moon Jellyfish

Aurelia Aurita

·        

About

Jellyfish float near the surface of the sea, catching tiny animals and plankton with their stinging tentacles. Though jellyfish predominantly float with the current, they can pulse its bell to migrate. The Moon Jellyfish catches plankton, molluscs, crustaceans and nematodes in a layer of mucus that covers its body, using its tentacles to sting and catch larger prey. The four gonads visible through the bell are the reproductive organs located at the bottom of the stomach, and they commonly assume the colour of any prey being devoured. It lives up to its name in British waters and is often spotted washed up on shore. Jellyfish are 95% water and have no brain, blood or heart.

How to identify

A round, dome-shaped jelly, transparent with four C-shaped markings around the centre. You can usually see these jellyfish floating just below the surface of the water.

Where to find it

Found in seas all around our coasts.

Tweet