What is a nettle jellyfish?

The Atlantic sea nettle (Chrysaora quinquecirrha), also known as the East Coast sea nettle or US Atlantic sea nettle, is a species of jellyfish that inhabits the Atlantic coast of the United States. Historically it was confused with several Chrysaora species, resulting in incorrect reports of C.

What do sea nettle jellyfish eat?

zooplankton
DIET: Sea nettles eat zooplankton, small fish, crustaceans, and worms; and other jellyfish.

Are Pacific sea nettle jellyfish poisonous?

The sea nettle hunts its prey with stinging cells called cnidocytes. These pierce the skin and inject poison into their prey. The sting of the sea nettle is not usually dangerous to humans, though it can be painful. However, some people have an allergy to the venom and can suffer serious reactions from it.

What is the difference between sea nettles and jellyfish?

Jellyfish have a transparent, gelatinous body and an umbrella-shaped bell called a medusa. Tentacles with stinging cells hang from the bell. The stinging cells are called nematocysts. Sea nettles have a smooth, milky white bell that grows to about 4 inches in diameter.

How long is the sea nettle jellyfish?

Pacific sea nettles feed on zooplankton, including other jellies. The bells of these jellyfish can measure up to 30 inches wide, and tentacles can be as long as 16 feet on giant specimens.

What happens to jellyfish in the winter?

A. Jellyfish do not hibernate in a true sense but spend the winter in a dormant stage. The free-swimming jellyfish, known as the medusa stage of the reproductive cycle, die after releasing eggs in the warm months. The eggs enter a budding stage, producing polyps that go to the bottom to spend the winter.

How do sea nettles move?

As they move through the water with both oral arms and tentacles extended, their tentacles stream below, above, and alongside the bell creating a large surface area with which to capture prey. When physical contact is made with a prey item, the nematocyst is triggered, causing the nematocyst cell to burst open.

What do jellyfish eat?

Jellyfish digest their food very quickly. They wouldn’t be able to float if they had to carry a large, undigested meal around. Check out where jellyfish live. They dine on fish, shrimp, crabs and tiny plants.

How do Pacific sea nettles eat?

Sea nettles are carnivorous. The Pacific sea nettle’s stinging cells paralyze prey, such as other sea jellies, zooplankton, and copepods. They then use their frilly oral arms to shuttle the food to their digestive system.

How long does a jellyfish live?

How long do jellyfish live? Most jellyfish live less than one year, and some some of the smallest may live only a few days. Each species has a natural life cycle in which the jellyfish form is only part of the life cycle (see video clip showing different life cycle stages).

How are jellyfish born?

Just like butterflies, which that are born from the transformation of caterpillars, jellyfish are born by asexual reproduction from polyps that – unlike caterpillars – remain alive for many years.

Do sea nettles have eyes?

Like all other jellyfish, the Pacific sea nettle is mostly water with a basic nervous system that allows the animal to respond to stimuli like light and smell. Fun fact: the sensory organs used to detect light are called ocelli, also known as a simple eye.