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Australian spotted jellyfish Phyllorhiza punctata

  Jellyfish & Ctenaria

Australian spotted jellyfish

Australian spotted jellyfish Phyllorhiza punctata

Identity card

Australian spotted jellyfish

Scientific name:
Phyllorhiza punctata
Family:
Mastigiidae
Class:
Scyphozoa
Phylum:
Cnidaria
Year of description:
Lendenfeld, 1884
IUCN Status:
Not Evaluated
Distribution:

Native to Australia, it can now be found around the Hawaiian Islands, in the Caribbean, in Southern California.

Habitat:

It lives mainly in temperate waters near the coast, in estuaries and in the vicinity of ports.

Size:

Its umbrella measures between 30 and 50 cm in diameter

Diet:

Zooplankton, fish eggs or larvae and small fish.

Australian spotted jellyfish Phyllorhiza punctata
 
 
 

It is nicknamed the "floating bell" owing to the shape of its umbrella.

 
 
 

The Australian spotted jellyfish consumes an enormous amount of plankton. Where it becomes invasive, it can disrupt food webs and affect organisms that feed on plankton.

Scientists estimate that the Australian spotted jellyfish may ingest over 2,000 eggs per day. Jellyfish are cnidarians just like anemones and coral.

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Where is the animal to be found?

It lives mainly in temperate waters near the coast, in estuaries and in the vicinity of ports. It can be seen swimming close to the surface.

How can it be recognised?

This Australian jellyfish can be recognised by its blue-tinged umbrella speckled with white spots. It has 8 oral arms with endings that branch out into the shape of a cauliflower. Its tentacles are located at the end of these oral arms.

Like all jellyfish, the Australian spotted jellyfish has tentacles that sting, but is not considered to be dangerous to humans. Its umbrella measures between 30 and 50 cm in diameter but can reach a record size of 70 cm.

What is distinctive about it?

It was accidentally introduced into the Gulf of Mexico. According to some sources, it was carried in the water tanks of ships.It is now considered an invasive species: its proliferation is responsible for the decrease in fish larvae and eggs.

Australian spotted jellyfish Phyllorhiza punctata

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