Jellyfish
There are numerous of different species that live in the oceans, from microbes to gigantic whales. Each category of animals has their unique abilities, for example some fishes swim using their fins, while other aquatic animals don’t swim but walk. Of all the variety of marine animals I would like to address jellyfish and their lifestyle since they are very intriguing animals.
Jellyfish are a type of zooplankton part of the phylum cnidaria, greek word for “stinging nettle” and the class scyphozoa, Greek word for “cup” referring to their body shape. They’ve been on earth for more than 700 million years, resulting in more than 2000 species. Their habitat ranges from cold waters to hot waters and deep sea to close to surface areas.
Jellyfish bodies are gelatinous resembling an umbrella-shaped bell, transparent, and have trailing tentacles. They have rudimentary sensory nerves at the base of their tentacles that allows them to see light, detect smells, and …show more content…
The reproductive cycle of jellyfish starts by males releasing sperm into the water and the female jellyfish collects it to fertilize their eggs. Then they are released as planula larvae that float around in water until the find a place to settle down. Following is the polyp stage, the formation of the mouth and tentacles. They are able to produce clones of themselves by asexual budding, resulting in polyp colonies. They may develop into a strobila, in which ephyrae can break away to become jellyfish.
Adult stinging jellyfish are called medusae and non-stinging jellyfish are called comb jellies or ctenophores. Their lifespans range from few hours to several years depending in the environment conditions.
Jellyfish are considered as free-swimming marine animals because they float on water and are moved by ocean currents. Some types of jellyfish can swim by radially expanding and contracting their bell shaped bodies to push water behind
There are numerous of different species that live in the oceans, from microbes to gigantic whales. Each category of animals has their unique abilities, for example some fishes swim using their fins, while other aquatic animals don’t swim but walk. Of all the variety of marine animals I would like to address jellyfish and their lifestyle since they are very intriguing animals.
Jellyfish are a type of zooplankton part of the phylum cnidaria, greek word for “stinging nettle” and the class scyphozoa, Greek word for “cup” referring to their body shape. They’ve been on earth for more than 700 million years, resulting in more than 2000 species. Their habitat ranges from cold waters to hot waters and deep sea to close to surface areas.
Jellyfish bodies are gelatinous resembling an umbrella-shaped bell, transparent, and have trailing tentacles. They have rudimentary sensory nerves at the base of their tentacles that allows them to see light, detect smells, and …show more content…
The reproductive cycle of jellyfish starts by males releasing sperm into the water and the female jellyfish collects it to fertilize their eggs. Then they are released as planula larvae that float around in water until the find a place to settle down. Following is the polyp stage, the formation of the mouth and tentacles. They are able to produce clones of themselves by asexual budding, resulting in polyp colonies. They may develop into a strobila, in which ephyrae can break away to become jellyfish.
Adult stinging jellyfish are called medusae and non-stinging jellyfish are called comb jellies or ctenophores. Their lifespans range from few hours to several years depending in the environment conditions.
Jellyfish are considered as free-swimming marine animals because they float on water and are moved by ocean currents. Some types of jellyfish can swim by radially expanding and contracting their bell shaped bodies to push water behind