Here is another helping of Jellyfish from the Monterey Bay Aquarium. When I was doing a search to identify what species this is Google's Gemini could only tell me it is a Jellyfish which wasn't much help. There were lots of similar photos online from other visitors to the aquarium, proving that it really is one of the most popular exhibits there.
From the Monterey Bay Aquarium website I learned that this is a Sea Nettle and while many varieties of jellyfish don't sting this one does. It hunts prey by trailing its long tentacles and frilly "mouth-arms". As prey creatures (which include young pollock, larval fish, zooplankton and other jellies) touch the tentacles they receive a paralysing sting and then stick tight before being moved to the mouth-arms and then finally into the sea nettle's mouth to be consumed. The bell grows to around 45cm (almost 18" in old money) and the mouth-arms reach 3.6 - 4.6 metres (12- 15 feet). Despite their fearsome reputation they really are quite beautiful and as I said in my last post it is very relaxing watching them.
I will return to jellyfish in my next post so if you have enjoyed these shot please come back for more.
But here is a little bonus for you. As mentioned in the last post I wanted to share a photo of my mate Mark... who is a Hammerhead Shark. There is a children's story My Mate Mark is a Hammerhead Shark by Jeanne Willis. I enjoy reading it with my grandchildren, or at least my eldest grandchild who is 3. At the aquarium he was really excited to see this shark and he could relate it to the character in the story. If you have kids or grandkids its definitely worth a read. Although they can appear quite menacing and like the jellyfish above have a bit of a reputation in this photo he appears as if he is smiling and that makes him seem much less threatening.
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