Jellyfish Ephyra

We just learned about the Jellyfish Polyps.

Another part of a jellyfish is the Ephyra.

After the polyps grow for a little while, they start to grow parts that look more like a jellyfish.
It starts to get a bell shape, grow some tentacles and even mouth parts.
Eventually it floats away and is like a mini-jellyfish, not quite grown yet.

This part of the jellyfish's life is known as the Ephyra.

Later on it grows up a little more and is called a Medusae, which is the science word for the jellyfish species.


(from: wikipedia - ephyra)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Radula

Jellyfish Polyps

We just learned about the Amebocyte that lives inside a jellyfish.

Another interesting thing about Jellyfish is the Jellyfish Polyps.

When Jellyfish have babies, they are usually like little tubes that just float in the water and try to find something to stick on to.

They look a lot like other hydrozoans and even coral when they are growing up.
These little baby jellyfish are called polyps.


(from: wikipedia - polyp)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Octopus - Three Hearts

Amebocyte

We just learned about the Velarium.

Another part of a jellyfish's body is an Amebocyte.

These are teeny tiny little animals that live in a jellyfish's body and will help eat up junk that the jellyfish doesn't want to eat.
Some of them look like tiny little crabs or clams.


(from: wikipedia - amebocyte)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Statocyst

Velarium

We just learned about the Jellyfish Statocyst.

Another part of some jellyfish is the Velarium.

For the box jellyfish, underneath the edge of the bell on the inside it folds in, kind of like a little shelf.
This makes it so that when they squish their bell to swim, it makes it like a torpedo and pushes water out faster than normal.

Because of this these are the fastest jellyfish in the world, and we already know they are one of the most dangerous because of their sting!
They can swim up to 20 feet per minute.
That's still not even one mile per hour, but for a stinging jellyfish that's pretty quick.


(from: wikipedia - box jellyfish)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Cephalopod Skin

Jellyfish Statocyst

We just learned about the Ocelli.

Another part of a jellyfish's body is Jellyfish Statocyst.

We've learned about the Octopus Statocyst before, and it's pretty much the same thing.

The jellyfish has a small sac in it's body, with small hairs on the inside, and a hard ball inside.
When the jellyfish moves around, the ball rolls around and touches the hairs.
These hairs tell the jellyfish which way is up or down and which way they are swimming.


(from: wikipedia - statocyst)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Cephalopod - Cirrus

Ocelli

We just learned about the Rhopalium.

Another part of a jellyfish is the Ocelli.

In the parrs of the jellyfish's bell where it dents in called the rhopalium, sometimes a jellyfish will have eyes called the ocelli.

They are very simple and do not have a lot of parts like human eyes, but they can sense some darkness and light, and use that to swim toward or away from something.


(from: wikipedia - carybdeida)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Cephalopod Eyes

Rhopalium

We just learned about the Lappet.

Another part of a jellyfish is the Rhopalium.

Remember we learned about the lappet that goes the bell and dents in on some spots.
The part where the bell dents in toward the middle is called the Rhopalium.

In these rhopalium are things that jellyfish can use to sense light and movement.


(from: wikipedia - rhopalium)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Cephalopod Suckers

Lappet

We just learned about the Nerve Net that is like a jellyfish's brain.

Another part of a jellyfish is the Lappet.

The circle shaped bell of a jellyfish is sometimes split up into parts by a small indent on the outside of the bell.
This little part where the bell dips toward the middle helps the jellyfish bell be able to flex and pull in and out so the jellyfish can swim.

Each of the parts of the outside of the bell between the indents is called a lappet.


(from: wikipedia - aurelia aurita)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Cephalopod - Tentacle Hooks

Nerve Net

We just learned about the Jellyfish Stomach.

Another part of a jellyfish's body is the Nerve Net.

In humans, our nervous system is our brain which is in charge of the rest of our body, and then our spinal cord and nerves that sends messages back and forth to the brain.

In most jellyfish, they have a nerve net which is kind of like the nerves we have all over, but without the spinal cord or a brain.

The nerves are all hooked together, and if a jellyfish senses something near by the nerve net can send messages all over it's body for the whole jellyfish to swim or try to pull in it's oral arms.
But it doesn't really have any thinking to it, it is just a very quick and simple reaction to a feeling.

It's kind of like if you touch something really hot, your hand very quickly pulls away without really thinking about it.
But if you were like a jellyfish, then your hand would touch something hot but your whole body would pull away, arms, legs and all!


(from: wikipedia - nerve net)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Cephalopod - Arms and Tentacles

Jellyfish Stomach

We just learned about the Nematocysts.

Another part of a jellyfish is the Jellyfish Stomach.

We learned before about the oral arms that bring the food to the stomach, and the manubrium which is both the way a jellyfish eats and also gets rid of waste.

When a jellyfish gets food into it's stomach, it uses things called enzymes to slowly digest the food until it is all liquid, and then it sends it off to all the parts of the jellyfish's body.

After the good parts of the food are all used up by the jellyfish's body, the liquid is sent back to the jellyfish's stomach, and then pushed out of the manubrium so it is empty again.


(from: wikipedia - jellyfish)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Cuttlebone

Nematocysts

We just learned about the Tentacles of a jellyfish.

Another part of a jellyfish is the Nematocyst.

This is the part of the jellyfish that stings its prey, or even stings a person.

They are almost like traps on the jellyfish's tentacles that just wait until they get touched a tiny bit, and then they shoot out and then squirt toxins into their prey to stun them or kill them.


(from: wikipedia - cnidocyte)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Chromatophore

Tentacles

We just learned about the Oral Arms of a jellyfish.

Another part of a jellyfish is the Tentacles.

These are the arms that hang down from the edge of the big circular bell of the jellyfish.
The tentacles have stingers on them that help them catch prey, and then the oral arms help bring them up to their manubrium mouth.


(from: wikipedia - jellyfish)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Cephalopod Ink

Oral Arms

We just learned about the Manubrium mouth on a jellyfish.

Another part of a jellyfish's body is the Oral Arms.

We learned that the manubrium is the mouth.
The oral arms are connected to the manubrium, and they hang down below the jellyfish like tentacles.
When they sting an animal, the oral arms help bring the food up to their manubrium mouth so they can eat it.


(from: wikipedia - jellyfish)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Cephalopod Funnel

Manubrium

We just learned about the Gastrodermis that helps the jellyfish eat.

Another part of the jellyfish's body is the Manubrium.

This is a part that hangs down from the middle of the inside of the jellyfish.
They use it to eat, and also to get rid of waste.


(from: wikipedia - jellyfish)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Octopus Gills

Gastrodermis

We just learned about the jellyfish Mesoglea underneath the bell.

Another part of a jellyfish's body is the Gastrodermis.

This is the part below the mesoglea.
The gastrodermis helps the jellyfish digest the food that gets brought up to their mouth.


(from: wikipedia - gastrodermis)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Mantle

Mesoglea

We just learned about the Jellyfish - Epidermis.

Another part of the jellyfish body is the Mesoglea.

Underneath the bell part of the jellyfish is an open area that is made up of water and some other gooey stuff called collagen.
It's almost like a balloon full of jelly that helps the jellyfish keep it's shape in the water.


(from: wikipedia - mesoglea)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Octopus Beaks

Jellyfish Epidermis

We just learned about the Jellyfish Bell.

Another part of the jellyfish is the Epidermis.

The epidermis is the skin on the outside of the bell.
Just like humans, jellyfish have skin, and their epidermis has a bunch of nerves in it called a "nerve net".

This nerve net helps them feel movement in the water and tell their body where to try and swim to get food.


(from: wikipedia - jellyfish)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Japanese Flying Squid

Jellyfish Bell

We just learned about the long bubbly hydrozoan, the Marrus Orthocanna.

Let's learn a little bit about Jellyfish bodies.
The big part of the jellyfish that looks kind of like the head is called the Bell.


(from: wikipedia - jellyfish)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Opalescent Inshore Squid

Marrus Orthocanna

We just learned about the Green Hydra.

Another type of hydrozoan is the Marrus Orthocanna.

This animal looks like a long fiery string with bubbles on it.
It can grow to be several feet long, and forty inches wide.

These creatures live in very deep waters, over 600 feet deep and mostly in the Arctic Ocean.


(from: wikipedia - marrus orthocanna)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Big Blue Octopus

Green Hydra

We just learned about the String Jellyfish.

Another type of hydrozoan is a Green Hydra, also called the Hydra Viridissima.

These are skinny green animals with tentacles, that are very small, only about 10 milimeters.

They eat tiny little insects and crustaceans.

Green Hydras mostly do not swim around anywhere and usually just live on top of other things in the water like plants.

Their green color comes from a type of green algea that grows on their body.

They can flex their body a little to move around if they have to, but mostly they just stay on the plant they are attached to.


(from: wikipedia - hydra viridissima)


Giftige Tierwelt: faszinierende Lebewesen im Tümpel. Süßwasserpolyp, Hydra viridissima - nature tv Lothar Lenz

Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Pharaoh Cuttlefish