Blue jellyfish

Blue nettle jellyfish ( Cyanea lamarckii )

The Blue nettle jellyfish ( Cyanea lamarckii ) is a species in the order of the flags jellyfish. The conspicuous type is also found in North and Baltic Sea, where it next to the yellow mane jellyfish ( Cyanea capillata ) and the compass jellyfish ( Chrysaora melanaster ) represents one of the few species of jellyfish that occur frequently and also the people can be unpleasant. Touching the tentacles triggers the stinging cells that penetrate the skin nettle tube and inject a poison. The skin blushes and swells selectively on. Also, allergic reactions are possible.

Description

The Blue nettle jellyfish has a shade diameter of up to 30 centimeters, her shield is greatly thickened in the center and thins toward the edge of.

On the bottom of the screen to find hollow tentacles in eight horseshoe-shaped to rectangular groups of 40 to 60 pieces, which can be up to 100 inches long with very large specimens. From the surface of the screen are stinging cells out in groups. Despite its name, the color varies from clear to pale yellow or pale brown to gray, to pale blue or violet, young specimens are often still colorless. For strongly blue-stained specimens, the internal structure of the screen is clearly traced.

The centrally positioned at the bottom of the screen, short and thick manubrium ( mouth tube ) goes into four broad and curtain- like folded lips, which can be yellow to whitish; thick mouth arms are slightly shorter than the screen diameter. The four pale pink gonads are located around the mouth and arms hang down freely from the bottom of the screen.

The Blue nettle jellyfish similar to the related yellow mane jellyfish ( Cyanea capillata ). From this it is to be distinguished by size (C. capillata reaches up to 50 cm Shade diameter ), their color (C. capillata is dark red to brown) and the number of marginal tentacles (C. capillata: 70 to 150 pieces per group).

Way of life

The animals feed on larger zooplankton such as Hydrozoa. To catch them, they break out of their swimming movements spread their tentacles edge as a network and can sink down in the water.

Dissemination

Blue Nettle jellyfish are found from Scandinavia to the Atlantic Ocean, the North Sea and Baltic Sea. They are pelagic animals, so live freely floating in open water.

Evidence

• M. Sabatini: Cyanea lamarckii. Blue jellyfish, in:. Marine Life Information Network: Biology and Sensitivity Key Information subprograms, Plymouth: Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom, online, accessed October 1, 2007
• Thomas Merck, Wulf Greve: Scyphomedusen the German Bight, Publ Wiss. Film. Biol 22 (1995 ), pp. 37-48, PDF Online