The largest jellyfish in the world. The largest jellyfish in the world: photo

One of the most mysterious inhabitants sea ​​depths, arousing interest and a certain fear, jellyfish can rightly be called. Who are they, where did they come from, what varieties are there in the world, what is their life cycle, are they as dangerous as popular rumor says - I want to know about all this for sure.

Jellyfish appeared more than 650 million years ago, making them one of the oldest organisms on Earth.

About 95% of the jellyfish's body is water, which is also their habitat. Most jellyfish live in salt water, although there are species that prefer fresh water. Jellyfish are the “sea jelly” phase of the life cycle of members of the genus Medusozoa, alternating with the stationary asexual phase of nonmotile polyps, from which they are formed by budding after maturation.

The name was introduced in the 18th century by Carl Linnaeus, who saw in these strange organisms a certain resemblance to the mythical Gorgon Medusa, due to the presence of tentacles that flutter like hair. With their help, the jellyfish catches small organisms that serve as food for it. The tentacles may look like long or short, pointed threads, but they are all equipped with stinging cells that stun prey and make hunting easier.

Life cycle of scyphoids: 1-11 - asexual generation (polyp); 11-14 - sexual generation (jellyfish).

Glowing jellyfish

The one who saw it glow dark night sea ​​water, he is unlikely to be able to forget this sight: myriads of lights illuminate the depths of the sea, shimmering like diamonds. The reason for this amazing phenomenon The smallest planktonic organisms, including jellyfish, serve. The phosphoric jellyfish is considered one of the most beautiful. It is not found very often, living in the benthic zone near the coasts of Japan, Brazil, and Argentina.

The diameter of the luminous jellyfish umbrella can reach 15 centimeters. Living in the dark depths, jellyfish are forced to adapt to conditions, provide themselves with food, so as not to disappear altogether as a species. An interesting fact is that the bodies of jellyfish do not have muscle fibers and cannot resist water flows.

Since the slow jellyfish, swimming at the will of the current, cannot keep up with mobile crustaceans, small fish or other planktonic inhabitants, they have to use a trick and force them to swim up to the predatory mouth opening. And the best bait in the darkness of the bottom space is light.

The body of a luminous jellyfish contains a pigment - luciferin, which is oxidized under the influence of a special enzyme - luciferase. The bright light attracts victims like moths to a candle flame.

Some species of luminous jellyfish, such as Rathkeya, Equorea, Pelagia, live near the surface of the water, and, gathering in large quantities, they literally make the sea burn. The amazing ability to emit light has interested scientists. Phosphors have been successfully isolated from the genome of jellyfish and introduced into the genomes of other animals. The results turned out to be quite unusual: for example, mice whose genotype was changed in this way began to grow green hairs.

Poisonous jellyfish - Sea Wasp

Today, more than three thousand jellyfish are known, and many of them are far from harmless to humans. All types of jellyfish have stinging cells “charged” with poison. They help to paralyze the victim and deal with him without any problems. Without exaggeration, for divers, swimmers, and fishermen, a jellyfish called the Sea Wasp is represented. The main habitat of such jellyfish is warm tropical waters, there are especially many of them off the coast of Australia and Oceania.

Transparent bodies of pale blue color are invisible in warm water quiet sandy bays. The small size, namely, up to forty centimeters in diameter, is also not attractive special attention. Meanwhile, the poison of one individual is enough to send about fifty people to heaven. Unlike their phosphorescent counterparts, sea wasps can change direction of movement, easily finding careless swimmers. The poison that enters the victim’s body causes paralysis of smooth muscles, including the respiratory tract. Being in shallow water, a person has a small chance of being saved, but even if medical assistance was provided in a timely manner and the person did not die from suffocation, deep ulcers form at the sites of the “bites”, causing severe pain and not healing for many days.

Dangerous little ones - Irukandji jellyfish

Tiny Irukandji jellyfish, described by Australian Jack Barnes in 1964, have a similar effect on the human body, with the only difference being that the degree of damage is not so deep. He, as a true scientist who stands up for science, experienced the effect of poison not only on himself, but also on his own son. Symptoms of poisoning - severe headache and muscle pain, convulsions, nausea, drowsiness, loss of consciousness - are not fatal in themselves, but the main risk is a sharp increase in blood pressure from a man who personally met Irukandji. If the victim has problems with cardiovascular system, then the probability of death is quite high. The size of this baby is about 4 centimeters in diameter, but its thin spindle-shaped tentacles reach 30-35 centimeters in length.

Bright beauty - Physalia jellyfish

Another very dangerous inhabitant for humans tropical waters is Physalia - Sea boat. Her umbrella is painted in bright colors: blue, violet, purple and floats on the surface of the water, so it is visible from afar. Entire colonies of attractive sea “flowers” ​​attract gullible tourists, beckoning them to pick them up as quickly as possible. This is where it lurks main danger: hidden under the water are long, up to several meters, tentacles equipped with a huge number of stinging cells. The poison acts very quickly, causing severe burns, paralysis and disturbances in the functioning of the cardiovascular, respiratory and central nervous systems. If the meeting took place on great depth or simply far from the shore, then its outcome may be the saddest.

Giant Jellyfish Nomura - Lion's Mane

A real giant is the Nomura Bell, which is also called the Lion's Mane for some reason. external resemblance with the king of beasts. The diameter of the dome can reach two meters, and the weight of such a “baby” reaches two hundred kilos. Lives in the Far East, in coastal waters Japan, off the coast of Korea and China.

Huge hairy ball getting into fishing nets, damages them, causing damage to the fishermen and striking them themselves when they try to free themselves. Even if their venom is not fatal to humans, meetings with the “Lion’s Mane” rarely take place in a friendly atmosphere.

Cyanea is considered one of the largest jellyfish. Living in cold waters, it reaches largest sizes. The most gigantic specimen was discovered and described by scientists at the end of the 19th century in North America: its dome was 230 centimeters in diameter, and the length of the tentacles turned out to be 36.5 meters. There are a lot of tentacles, they are collected in eight groups, each of which has from 60 to 150 pieces. It is characteristic that the dome of the jellyfish is divided into eight segments, representing a kind of octagonal star. Fortunately, they do not live in the Azov and Black Seas, so you don’t have to worry about them when going to the sea to relax.

Depending on the size, the color also changes: large specimens are painted bright purple or purple, smaller ones - in orange, pink or beige. Cyaneas live in surface waters, rarely descending into the depths. The poison is not dangerous to humans, causing only an unpleasant burning sensation and blisters on the skin.

Using jellyfish in cooking

The number of jellyfish living in the seas and oceans Globe truly enormous, and not a single species is in danger of extinction. Their use is limited by mining capabilities, but people have long been using beneficial features jellyfish for medicinal purposes and enjoy them taste qualities in cooking. In Japan, Korea, China, Indonesia, Malaysia and other countries, jellyfish have long been eaten, calling them “crystal meat”. Its benefits are due to the high content of protein, albumin, vitamins and amino acids, and microelements. And when properly prepared, it has a very refined taste.

Jellyfish “meat” is added to salads and desserts, sushi and rolls, soups and main courses. In a world where population growth is steadily threatening the onset of famine, especially in underdeveloped countries, protein from jellyfish can be a good help in solving this issue.

Jellyfish in medicine

The use of jellyfish for making medicines is typical, in to a greater extent, in those countries where their consumption has long ceased to be a subject of surprise. For the most part, these are countries located in coastal areas where jellyfish are directly harvested.

In medicine, preparations containing processed jellyfish bodies are used to treat infertility, obesity, baldness and gray hair. The poison extracted from stinging cells helps to cope with diseases of the ENT organs and normalize blood pressure.

Modern scientists are struggling to find medicine, capable of defeating cancerous tumors, without excluding the possibility that jellyfish will also help in this difficult fight.

October 24, 2013

Arctic giant jellyfish

The largest jellyfish in the world, according to the latest data, is the Arctic giant. She lives in the Atlantic. One of these jellyfish was washed ashore in Massachusetts. The diameter of her bell was 2.3 m, and her tentacles were 36 m. During her life big jellyfish eats more than 15 thousand fish.

The most poisonous jellyfish in the world is the Australian sea wasp. When touching the tentacles, people die within 1-2 minutes, provided there is no immediate medical care. Its dome is only 12 centimeters in diameter. But the length of the tentacles is about 8 meters. According to the mechanism of action, jellyfish venom is similar to cobra venom and acts on the heart muscle. Since 1880, about 70 people have become its victims on the shores of Australia. Oddly enough, but one of the most effective means protection are women's tights. Despite its tiny size, the killer jellyfish has a deadly sting. In 2002, she managed to cause Irukandji syndrome in Australia, which killed 2 tourists. It all started with a small, mosquito-sized bite. Those bitten suffered from lower back pain and cramps for an hour. In addition, nausea, vomiting, increased sweating and cough were noted. The consequences of what is happening are very sad. There are known cases of a bite leading to paralysis or death as a result of cerebral hemorrhage or cardiac arrest.

Invasion of giant jellyfish

Recently, off the coast of the town of Echizen, located in Fukui Prefecture, there has been an unprecedented invasion of giant jellyfish. Thousands of special ones, the size of which is more than a meter, and the weight exceeds 100 kilograms. The length of some individuals reached 5 meters. However, their poisonous tentacles were not fatal to people. The mass migration of giant jellyfish into the Sea of ​​Japan has been associated with rising water temperatures. Fishermen constantly complained about a sharp decrease in income, since in order to feed such a large number of giant jellyfish, the latter were killed or stunned a large number of fish and shrimp, not disdaining fishermen’s nets. Similar view jellyfish were first discovered in East Chinese sea. Since 1920, giant jellyfish of this species have migrated between Japan and Korean Peninsula due to an increase in temperature.

But still, the largest jellyfish remains the cyanea, or, as it is otherwise called, the blue-haired jellyfish. In science, there are two subspecies of it. Blue and Japanese cyanea. But Japanese ones are significantly smaller in size than blue cyanides.

Giant jellyfish live in moderate to cold waters. Found in small quantity off the coast of Australia. And yet the most numerous populations are observed in the northern seas of the Pacific Ocean and the Atlantic. Giant jellyfish can also be found in open seas Arctic. Exactly at northern latitudes There are truly giant jellyfish. IN warm seas As a rule, cyanea either does not survive or is no more than 0.5 m in diameter.

Body of a giant jellyfish

The body of a giant jellyfish can have a variety of colors. Mainly red and brown tones predominate. In adults top part domes painted in yellow, and the edges are red. The tentacles can be light to purple in color. Sweat cavities are red. Younger specimens have much brighter colors. A large number of sticky tentacles are observed. They form 8 groups. Any group, in turn, has 60-150 tentacles within itself. They are all arranged in a row. The dome of the jellyfish is also divided into 8 parts. All this makes it similar to an eight-pointed star. Giant jellyfish are found in both female and male genders. During the fertilization period in males, sperm are released through the oral cavity directly into the water. From there they enter the females' mouths and brood chambers. In them, the eggs are fertilized and develop. Then the larvae leave these chambers and swim in the water. Gradually feeding and increasing in size, it can also reproduce asexually by budding. In spring, the process of transverse division and formation of jellyfish larvae occurs. They are transparent eight-pointed stars that do not have tentacles or mouth lobes. In mid-summer they turn into large jellyfish. They spend a lot of time in the surface layer of water. Cyaneas are predators by nature. Tentacles shoot into the body of a potential victim strong poison. Prey can be both planktonic organisms and small fish and jellyfish.

Tentacle Network

Giant jellyfish, being poisonous to humans, at the same time does not have the power to kill him. Only one case has been reported in the world fatal outcome from a giant jellyfish. In most cases, it causes allergic reactions. In other cases, a rash may appear on the person's body. Burns may appear in the place where the tentacles touched the human body. Or you may only experience redness of the skin. But all this goes away over time. There is a pattern of dependence of size on color. The smaller it is, the lighter the color. Small jellyfish are orange and brown in color. Giant jellyfish hunt in groups of about 10 individuals. They weave their tentacles together to form a huge network. This is where they fall sea ​​fish and some invertebrates. Giant jellyfish are at risk from turtles and seabirds. Other jellyfish and other jellyfish may also pose threats. big fish. Some may consider the giant jellyfish dangerous to human life and health. But that's not true. The burns from its tentacles can be painful for people with hypersensitivity.

The pain from them can last about 7-8 hours. In fact, the sting of a giant jellyfish is practically incapable of causing mortal harm to a person. However toxic substances may cause an allergic reaction in humans.

Jellyfish are the oldest Marine life, which appeared hundreds of millions of years ago. These underwater inhabitants got their name due to their resemblance to mythical creature- Medusa Gorgon. The body of these animal representatives sea ​​world more than 90% consists of water. Their favorite place habitats are salty waters. Translucent creatures are the object of research by scientists. The poisonous and largest jellyfish are of particular interest.

10. Irukandji jellyfish 10 centimeters

- one of the most poisonous Pacific jellyfish. The main habitat is Australian waters. The diameter of its dome is about 10 centimeters. Irukandji has four tentacles, the length of which can reach 1 meter. A jellyfish sting is dangerous to humans and can cause a number of unpleasant consequences: pain throughout the body, nausea, vomiting, tachycardia and even pulmonary edema. In rare cases, death may occur. Irukaji's venom has a slow-acting property, so symptoms may appear over several days. Despite its small size, it poses a certain risk for swimmers.

9. Jellyfish Pelagia 12 centimeters

(Night Light) is one of the most beautiful disc jellyfish, which is common in the waters of the World and Atlantic Oceans, as well as in the Red and Mediterranean Seas. The body diameter of the jellyfish reaches 12 centimeters. The color of the umbrella is purple-red and has ornate frills along the edges. In addition to stinging cells and tentacles, Pelagia has four oral cavities. The jellyfish begins to glow the moment it comes into contact with any objects. The main living creatures that the Nightlight feeds on are benthos, sometimes fry and crustaceans. The jellyfish poses a certain danger to humans, since its injected poison causes burns and, in some cases, shock.

8. Portuguese man of war 25 centimeters

(Physalia) - a jellyfish is a “sailboat”-shaped bubble floating on the surface of the water. The body of the “sailfish” is 25 centimeters, but the tentacles of Physalia can reach 50 meters, which it hides under water. It has a beautiful blue or purple color. The Portuguese man-of-war prefers to feed on fish larvae and small squid. Physalia is one of the most poisonous sea jellyfish. Upon contact with its tentacles, a person receives a severe burn, which is accompanied by acute pain. The injected poison can paralyze all vital organs, so it is difficult for a stung swimmer to stay on the water, and the person drowns. Portuguese man-of-war It is easy to notice from afar, thanks to its bright and beautiful coloring, so meeting it while swimming can be avoided.

(Eared jellyfish) is one of the most common types of large jellyfish. Aurelia's body is almost transparent and reaches 40 centimeters. Numerous thin tentacles have stinging cells that strike prey. Four oral lobes resemble drooping ears, which is why Aurelia received the name Ushastaya. This species feeds mainly on plankton and crustaceans. The eared jellyfish does not pose a danger to humans, and its bite can only cause a burn. In Asian countries, Aurelia is used to prepare exotic dishes.

6. Australian Sea Wasp 45 centimeters

- the most poisonous inhabitant of the World Ocean. The main habitat of the species is the coasts of Indonesia and Australia. Dome sea ​​wasp is 45 centimeters and is equipped with 60 tentacles, which when hunting prey can reach more than 3 meters. The sea animal has 24 eyes. It instantly stings a passing object in several places at once. Death from bites poisonous jellyfish can occur in just a few minutes. A swimmer who is stung receives enough to cause a heart attack and often drowns. It is quite difficult to notice this jellyfish due to its transparency. Feeds Australian wasp small fish and shrimp.

5. Corner mouth 60 centimeters

- one of largest sea jellyfish, living in Black and Mediterranean seas. Weight sea ​​creatures can reach 10 kg, and the diameter of the dome is 60 centimeters. For humans, Cornerot poses no danger and can only cause mild irritation upon contact with the tentacles. The cornerota umbrella is a “haven” for small fish that hide under the dome from danger. This species feeds only on plankton. Jellyfish are actively used in medicine for the preparation of medicines, as well as in cooking. In Japan, Thailand and China, a variety of dishes are prepared from Cornerot.

4. Purple striped jellyfish 70 centimeters

One of the largest and most graceful jellyfish, living in the Gulf of Monterey. The dome of the animal reaches 70 centimeters and has a rich color. A Purple Jellyfish sting can cause severe burns to a person. This type has not yet been thoroughly studied by science, so there is very little information about the animal.

(Sea nettle) - an inhabitant of the Pacific Ocean reveals the three largest jellyfish in the world. The body of an adult Chryasora can reach 1 meter, and its numerous tentacles can reach 4 meters. Tentacles severed from the body can exist separately in sea ​​depths for several weeks and sting. Sea nettle stings leave burns in the form of thin welts. Victims experience sharp pain and burning, but do not pose a danger to human health. Chryasora is one of the most beautiful representatives of its species, so the animal is often kept in oceanariums and aquariums. In the ocean, sea nettle feeds on plankton and small jellyfish.

(Lion's mane) - one of the largest species of jellyfish found in the seas Far East. Nomura measures 2 meters in size and can weigh up to 200 kg. Marine animals cause harm to the fishing industry. A giant hairy ball gets caught in the net, entangling it. When the fishermen try to free the net, Nomura sharply stings the man. When allergic reaction for poison, death from a Lion's mane bite is possible. From time to time, large accumulations of Nomura are observed off the coast of the Sea of ​​Japan.

1. Hairy Cyanea 2.3 meters

It ranks first among the giant jellyfish in the world. The body of individual individuals of Cyanea can reach 2.3 meters, and the length of the tentacles is 37 meters. The main habitat of this species is seas and oceans. These jellyfish rarely approach the shores and prefer to exist at depths of 20 meters. Giant Cyanea does not pose a serious danger to humans. Its bite can only cause a burn. Large individuals feed on plankton and other jellyfish.

Jellyfish CYANEA - the largest in the world

Arctic Cyanea (Cyanea capillata) is the largest jellyfish in the world. Its giant dome can reach a diameter of 2 meters, and its thin translucent tentacles grow up to 20 meters in length.

The body of cyanea can have a wide variety of colors, but brown and red individuals are usually found. In adult jellyfish, the top of the dome may be yellow and its edging red. The mouth lobes are usually colored bright crimson, which signals danger to other animals. The younger the jellyfish, the brighter its color.

Arctic Cyanea grows and develops according to life cycle all jellyfish. Her life is divided into two main stages: medusoid and polypoid. From birth, the jellyfish is a larva that floats freely in the water for several days. It then attaches to the substrate and becomes a polyp. In this state, the jellyfish actively feeds and rapidly increases in size. After some time, transparent stars - larvae - bud from the polyp, which in the future transform into jellyfish.

The habitat halos of these jellyfish cover everything northern seas Pacific and Atlantic oceans, where they swim freely and leisurely near the surface of the water. They move very impressively, making rare swings of the edge blades and contracting the dome.

We must not forget that these huge jellyfish are predators, so their long tentacles are always ready to attack and hunt. They form a dense network directly under the dome of the jellyfish and secrete a powerful poison that instantly kills small prey and paralyzes large animals. Almost all types of marine animals are targeted by cyanide: from plankton to fish and other jellyfish.

For a person, an encounter with Arctic cyanide will not bring serious trouble. People prone to allergies or those with sensitive skin will develop a slight rash, while stronger people will not notice any discomfort at all.

Jellyfish reproduce in this way: males release sperm into the water through their mouths, which penetrate into special cavities inside the female’s mouth. The embryos of future jellyfish are formed there, where they remain until they reach the age of emergence. open water. Once outside, the larvae begin the medusoid stage of their lives.

Arctic cyanea prefer to live in upper layers water and rarely sink to the very bottom. By nature, they are active predators that feed mainly on plankton, small fish and crustaceans. With a lack of the listed animals, cyanea begins to eat its relatives - jellyfish different types, including representatives of their own species. During the hunt, the cyanea rises almost to the surface of the water and spreads its long tentacles to the sides. In this position, the jellyfish looks more like a cluster of algae. When a prey swims between the tentacles and accidentally touches them, the cyanea wraps itself around the body of the prey and paralyzes it with poison, which is produced in numerous stinging cells located along the entire length of the tentacles. As soon as the prey stops moving, the cyanea pushes it towards the mouth opening with its tentacles and then with its oral lobes.

Arctic cyanea, or Cyanea capillata, has become a popular species, appearing in literary works, especially in 'The Adventures of the Lion's Mane' about Sherlock Holmes. However, Arctic cyanea is actually not as dangerous as it is portrayed in popular culture. The sting of this jellyfish is simply incapable of causing deaths in humans. Although the rash may be painful for sensitive people, and the toxins in the venom can cause an allergic reaction.

One specimen of Arctic Cyanea, which was found in Massachusetts Bay in 1870, was more than 7 feet in diameter, and its tentacles were longer than 120 feet. However, the Arctic Cyanea bell is known to be able to grow up to 8 feet in diameter, and its tentacles can reach a length of 150 feet. This creature is much longer than the blue whale, which is generally thought to be the largest animal in the world. This species of jellyfish is very variable in size. While the largest individuals are found in the most northern waters Northern Arctic Ocean, the size of the jellyfish decreases as you travel south. The color of this variety of jellyfish also depends on its size.

The largest specimens of jellyfish were dark red in color. As the size decreases, the color becomes lighter until it becomes light orange or Brown. The jellyfish bell is divided into eight petals. Each petal has a group of 60 to 130 tentacles at the edge of its jelly-like body. The Arctic cyanide also has many oral lobes near the mouth to facilitate the transport of food to the jellyfish's mouth. Like most jellyfish, the Arctic Cyanea is carnivorous, feeding on zooplankton, small fish, and ctenophores, and is also a cannibal, feeding on other jellyfish. Predators that pose a danger to this jellyfish are seabirds, big fish, other species of jellyfish and sea turtles.

I think, after reading the details, you realized that the photo above or the photo, for example, the photo at the beginning of the post is still just a convenient angle (or photoshop) and such huge jellyfish, of course, do not exist.

source Jacob delafon

The Arctic cyanea is the largest jellyfish in the world. This is very interesting and mysterious creature, living in very harsh conditions, giving preference to the cold waters of the Arctic and With the help of this article we will try to get to know it better.

External description

The diameter of the jellyfish's dome reaches an average of 50-70 centimeters, but specimens up to 2-2.5 meters are often found.

Such an inhabitant of the oceans can even be called a giant. It is not for nothing that stories by writers (for example, Arthur Conan Doyle’s “The Lion’s Mane”) that mention arctic cyanide are very popular. Its size, however, depends entirely on its habitat. Moreover, the further north it lives, the larger it becomes.

Arctic cyanide also has numerous tentacles that are located along the edges of the dome. Depending on the size of the jellyfish, they can reach from 20 to 40 meters in length. It is thanks to them that this sea ​​creature There is a second name - hairy jellyfish.

Its color is striking in its diversity, and young arctic cyanides have bright colors. With age they become duller in color. Jellyfish are usually found in dirty orange, purple and brown colors.

Habitat

Arctic cyanide lives in the waters of the Arctic and Pacific Oceans, where it lives practically anywhere. The only exceptions are the Azov and Black Seas.

Most often, the jellyfish prefers to be close to the shore, mainly in the upper layers of water. However, it can also be found in the open ocean.

Lifestyle of a jellyfish

The Arctic cyanea, photos of which, in addition to our article, can be found in various literature, is a rather active predator. Its diet includes plankton, crustaceans and small fish. If, due to a lack of food, the Arctic cyanea begins to starve, it can switch to its relatives, both its own species and other jellyfish.

The hunt proceeds as follows: it rises to the surface of the water, directs its tentacles towards different sides and waits. In this state, jellyfish look like algae. As soon as its prey, swimming by, touches the tentacles, the arctic cyanide immediately wraps itself around the entire body of its prey and releases a poison that can paralyze. After the prey stops moving, it eats it. Paralyzing poison is produced in the tentacles along their entire length.

In turn, Arctic cyanide can also become lunch for other jellyfish, seabirds, turtles and It is worth noting that even the largest specimens do not pose a particular danger to humans. In the worst case, a rash appears in places of contact with this ocean inhabitant, which immediately goes away after using antiallergic drugs. Typically, this reaction occurs in a person with sensitive skin, and some people may sometimes not even notice anything.

Reproduction of arctic cyanide

This process is very interesting: the male releases sperm through his mouth, and they, in turn, enter the female’s oral cavity. This is where the formation of embryos takes place. After they grow up, they emerge as larvae, which attach to the substrate and turn into a single polyp. After several months of active growth, it begins to reproduce, due to which the larvae of future jellyfish appear.