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.jpg/250px-Moon_jelly_-_adult_(rev2).jpg) An adult Aurelia aurita
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| Aurelia aurita Linnaeus, 1758 |
Aurelia aurita (the jelly, crystal jellyfish, moon jellyfish, common jellyfish, saucer jelly, or swimming jellyfish) is the most common jellyfish species found in the genus Aurelia. Carl Linnaeus (Latinized as Carolus Linnaeus, also known after his ennoblement as, May 23 new style (13 May old style 1707 who laid the foundations for Jellyfish are free-swimming members of the phylum Cnidaria. They have several different basic morphologies that represent several different cnidarian classes including the A genus (plural genera from Γένος Latin genus "descent family type gender" is a low-level Taxonomic Other species found in the genus Aurelia besides A. aurita include A. labiata and A. limbata. There are at least 13 species in the genus Aurelia including those that are still not described (Dawson, 2003). They can be found in the Atlantic Ocean, the Arctic Ocean and the Pacific Ocean, and are common to the waters off California, Japan, the East Coast of the United States as well as Europe. The Arctic Ocean, located in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Arctic north polar region is the smallest and shallowest of the world's five major The Pacific Ocean is the largest of the Earth 's Oceanic divisions California ( is a US state on the West Coast of the United States, along the Pacific Ocean. For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Japan topics. The East Coast of the United States, also known as the "Eastern Seaboard" or "Atlantic Seaboard" refers to the easternmost coastal states in the central and northern The animal is translucent, can be 25-40 cm across, and has characteristic patterns of color within its body. A centimetre ( American spelling: centimeter, symbol cm) is a unit of Length in the Metric system, equal to one hundredth It feeds by stinging small medusans, plankton and mollusks with its tentacles and bringing them into its body for digestion, but is capable of only limited motion; like other jellies it drifts with the current. In Biology, a medusa (plural medusae is a form of Cnidarian in which the body is shortened on its principal axis and broadened sometimes greatly in contrast Plankton consist of any drifting Organisms ( Animals Plants Archaea, or Bacteria) that inhabit the Pelagic zone of Molluscs are animals belonging to the phylum Mollusca. There are around 250000 extant Species within the phylum with an estimated 70000
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Biology
The cosmopolitan Aurelia aurita is found throughout the tropics and as far north as 70° latitude and as far south as 40°. In Biogeography, a Biological category of living things is said to have cosmopolitan distribution if this category can be found almost anywhere around the world The Tropics are centered on the Equator and limited in Latitude by the Tropic of Cancer in the northern hemisphere at approximately 23°26' (23 (J. E. Purcell, et al. 2001). In addition to frequenting the North American coast, they are usually found all around the coasts of the British Isles (Russell, 1953). The British Isles (Irish variously Na hOileáin Bhriotanacha, Oileáin Iarthair Eorpa, Éire agus an Bhreatain Mhór; Ellanyn Goaldagh Eileanan In general, A. aurita is an inshore species that can be found in places like estuaries and harbors (Russell, 1953). An estuary is a semi-enclosed Coastal body of Water with one or more Rivers or Streams flowing into it and with a free connection to the open A harbor or harbour (see spelling differences) or haven, is a place where ships may shelter from the Weather or are stored They can be recognized by their horse-shoe shaped gonads. They live in ocean water temperatures that range from −6 °C to 31 °C; with optimum temperatures of 9 °C to 19 °C (Rodriguez, 1996). An ocean (from Greek, ''Okeanos'' (Oceanus) is a major body of saline water, and a principal component of the Hydrosphere. The Celsius Temperature scale was previously known as the centigrade scale. A. aurita prefers mildly cold salt water with consistent currents (Rodriguez, 1996). They can be found in 3 ppt salinity water but are typically found only in water with salinity above 23 ppt. Salinity is the Saltiness or dissolved salt content of a body of Water.
Feeding
A. aurita and other Aurelia species feed on plankton that includes organisms such as mollusks, crustaceans, tunicate larvae, rotifers, young polychaetes, protozoans, diatoms, eggs, fish eggs, and other small organisms. Plankton consist of any drifting Organisms ( Animals Plants Archaea, or Bacteria) that inhabit the Pelagic zone of Molluscs are animals belonging to the phylum Mollusca. There are around 250000 extant Species within the phylum with an estimated 70000 Structure of crustaceans As Arthropods crustaceans have a stiff Exoskeleton, which must be shed to allow the animal to grow ( Ecdysis or molting In Roman mythology, the larvae or lemures (singular lemur) were the spectres or spirits of the dead they were the malignant version of the The rotifers make up a Phylum of microscopic and near-microscopic pseudocoelomate Animals They were first described by Rev The Polychaeta or polychaetes are a class of Annelid worms generally marine Protozoa (in Greek πρῶτον proton "first" and ζῷα zoia "animals" are unicellular Eukaryotes (singular Diatoms ( Greek: (dia = "through" + (temnein = "to cut" i Occasionally, they are also seen feeding on gelatinous zooplankton such as hydromedusae and ctenophores (Rodriguez, 1996). Gelatinous zooplankton is the term used to describe the fragile animals that live in the water column in the ocean The phylum Ctenophora (tɨˈnɒfərə commonly known as comb jellies, is a phylum that includes the Sea gooseberry ( Pleurobrachia pileus) and Larvae of A. aurita have nematocysts to capture prey and also to protect themselves from predators. A cnidocyte, cnidoblast or nematocyte, is a type of Venomous cell unique to the Phylum Cnidaria ( Corals The food is tied with mucus, and then it is passed down by ciliated action down into the gastrovascular cavity where digestive enzymes from serous cell break down the food. A cilium (plural cilia) is an Organelle found in eukaryotic cells Cilia are tail-like projections extending approximately Digestion is the breaking down of chemicals in the body into a form that can be absorbed Enzymes are Biomolecules that catalyze ( ie increase the rates of Chemical reactions Almost all enzymes are Proteins There is little known about the requirements for particular vitamins and minerals, but due to the presence of some digestive enzymes, we can deduce in general that A. A vitamin is an Organic compound required as a Nutrient in tiny amounts by an Organism. A mineral is a naturally occurring substance formed through geological processes that has a characteristic chemical composition a highly ordered atomic structure and specific aurita can process carbohydrates, proteins, and lipids (Arai, 1997). Carbohydrates (from ' Hydrates of Carbon ' or saccharides ( Greek σάκχαρον meaning " Sugar " are the most Proteins are large Organic compounds made of Amino acids arranged in a linear chain and joined together by Peptide bonds between the Carboxyl Lipids are broadly defined as any fat- Soluble ( lipophilic) naturally-occurring Molecule, such as fats oils waxes cholesterol sterols fat-soluble
Filtering Grid
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Body system
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A. aurita does not have respiratory parts such as gills, lungs, or trachea. In living organisms a respiratory system functions to allow Gas exchange. A gill is an anatomical structure found in many aquatic organisms lung is the essential Respiration organ in air-breathing Animals including most Tetrapods a few Fish and a few Snails The most primitive Many terrestrial Arthropods have evolved a closed Respiratory system composed of Spiracles, tracheae and Tracheoles to transport metabolic Since it is a small organism, it respires by diffusing oxygen from water through the thin membrane. Diffusion is the net movement of particles (typically molecules from an area of high concentration to an area of low concentration by uncoordinated random movement Within the gastrovascular cavity, low oxygenated water can be expelled and high oxygenated water can come in by ciliated action, thus increasing the diffusion of oxygen through cell (Rees, 1966). The large surface area membrane to volume ratio helps A. aurita to diffuse more oxygen and nutrients into the cells.
The basic body plan of A. aurita consists of several parts. The species lack respiratory, excretory, and circulatory systems (Arai, 1997). Excretion is the process of eliminating waste products of Metabolism and other non-useful materials This is an article about the rock music band "Circulatory System" The adult medusa of A. aurita, with a transparent look, has an umbrella margin membrane and tentacles that are attached to the bottom (Russell, 1953). It has four bright circular gonads that are under the stomach (J. The gonad is the organ that makes Gametes The gonads in males are the Testes and the gonads in Females are the Ovaries. E. Purcell, et al. 2001). Food travels through the muscular manubrium while the radial canals help disperse the food (Russell 1963). The manubrium (from Latin manubrĭum, "a handle" or manubrium sterni is the broad upper part of the Sternum. There is a middle layer of mesoglea, gastrodervascular cavity with gastrodermis, and epidermis (Solomon, 2002). Mesoglea, also known as ectoplasma, is the clear inert jellylike substance that makes up most of the bodies of Jellyfish, Comb jellies and certain primitive The gastrodermis is the inner layer of cells that lines a Gastrovascular cavity of Cnidarians. In Anatomy, squamous epithelium (from Latin squama, "scale" is an Epithelium characterised by its most superficial layer consisting There is a nerve net that is responsible for contractions in swimming muscles and feeding responses (Aria, 1997). A nerve is an enclosed cable-like bundle of peripheral Axons (the long slender projections of Neurons. Adult medusa can have a diameter up to 40 cm (Arai, 1997). The sexes are differentiated between males and females in the medusa stage (Arai, 1997). The young stage, planula, has small ciliated cells and would settle at the bottom of the water where it would change into strobila and then float off as ephyra (Gilbertson, 1999). There is an increasing size from starting stage planula to ephyra, from less than 1 cm in planula stage to 1 cm in ephyra stage (Russell, 1953).
Predators
The death of the organism sometimes is brought about after reproduction, leaving the gonads open to infection and degradation (Arai, 1997). A. aurita have been food for a wide variety of predators including the Ocean Sunfish (Mola mola), the Leatherback Sea Turtle (Dermochelys coriacea), a hydromedusa (Aequorea victoria) (Arai, 1997) and the scyphomedusa Phacellophora camtschatica (Towanda and Thuesen, 2006). The ocean sunfish, Mola mola, or common mola, is the heaviest known bony fish in the world The leatherback turtle ( Dermochelys coriacea) is the largest of all living turtles Aequorea victoria, also called the crystal jelly, is a Bioluminescent Jellyfish that is found off the west coast of North America Phacellophora camtschatica, known as the fried egg jellyfish or egg-yolk jellyfish, is a very large Jellyfish, with a bell up to 60 cm (2 They are hunted by birds also.
A. aurita is food in countries such as China, Philippines, Thailand, Malaysia, and Indonesia. China ( Wade-Giles ( Mandarin) Chung¹kuo² is a cultural region, an ancient Civilization, and depending on perspective a National The Philippines ( Filipino: Pilipinas, officially known as the Republic of the Philippines (fil ''Republika ng Pilipinas'' RP The Kingdom of Thailand (ˈtaɪlænd ราชอาณาจักรไทย, râːtɕʰa-ʔaːnaːtɕɑ̀k-tʰɑj For the biogeographical region see Malesia Malaysia (məˈleɪʒə or /məˈleɪziə/ is a country that consists of thirteen states and The Republic of Indonesia ( (Republik Indonesia is a Country in Southeast Asia.
There are possible metazoan parasites that attack A. aurita (Arai, 1997).
References
- Arai, M. N. 1997. A Functional Biology of Scyphozoa. Chapman and Hall, London, 68-206.
- Dawson, M. N. 2003. Macro-morphological variation among cryptic species of the moon jellyfish, "Aurelia" (Cnidaria: Scyphozoa). Marine Biology 143: 369-379.
- Gilbertson, L. 1999. Zoology Laboratory Manual 4th edition. McGraw-Hill Inc, CA, 9. 2-9. 7.
- Moen, F. E. and E. Svensen. 2004. Marine fish & invertebrates of Northern Europe. AquaPress: Southend-on-Sea. ISBN 0-9544060-2-8. 608 pp.
- Purcell, J. E. , W. M. Graham, and H. J. Dumont (Eds. ). 2001. Jellyfish Blooms: Ecological and Societal Importance. Kluwer Academic Publishers, Dordrecht, 229-273.
- Rees, W. J. 1996. The Cnidaria and Their Evolution. Academic Press Inc, NY, 77-104.
- Rodriguez, R. J. February 1996. "Aurelia aurita (Saucer Jelly, Moon Jelly, Common Sea Jelly Jellyfish) Narrative. " [1]
- Russell, F. S. 1953. The Medusae of the British Isles II. Syndics of Cambridge University Press, London, 81-186.
- Solomon, E. P. , L. R. Berg, and W. W. Martin. 2002. Biology 6th edition. Brooks/Cole Publishing, CA, 602-608.
- Towanda, T. and E. V. Thuesen. 2006. Ectosymbiotic behavior of Cancer gracilis and its trophic relationships with its host Phacellophora camtschatica and the parasitoid Hyperia medusarum. Marine Ecology Progress Series 315, 221-236.
- National Center for Biotechnology Information. October 23, 2001. [2]
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