|
Floating Jelly Hat Wednesday, November 18, 2009 - Anuradha Menon Home >> Picture Of The Day >> Biology   
|
|
|
|
|
||||||||||
| This jellyfish named 'voragonema pedunculata' uses its myriad tentacles (between 1,000 and 2,000 of them)to capture and consume tiny crustaceans. Jellyfish are opportunistic creatures; the key to their 500-million-year success is their adaptability. | ||||||||||
|
||||||||||
|
The 200 classified species range from the fingernail-size star-shaped stalked jellyfish (Haliclystus auricula), which is native to northern Pacific waters, to the giant Lion’s Mane (Cyanea capillata), which lives in Arctic waters and can grow up to eight feet in diameter, with tentacles spanning 100 feet. Water makes up about 96 percent of a jellyfish. The animal’s gooey mass includes the familiar bell-shaped body that houses a mouth (which doubles as the anus) and a stomach pouch, which digests the plankton, small fish and roe that jellies eat. (Source: MBARI) |
| Other Articles |
|
2007 In Technology |
|
2008 in Science, Medicine and Space |
| Related News |
|
Cell Phone Radiation Alters Human DNA Expression |
|
Fighting Viruses with their Own Weapons |
| Other Columns |
|
Igloo White: the Automated Battlefield |
|
You, Grandpa, and Time Travel Paradoxes |
|
