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Characteristics:

Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Cnidaria
Class: Scyphozoa
Order: Semaeostomaeida
Family: Ulmaridae
Scientific name: Aurelia aurita
Norwegian: glassmanet
The umbrella is flat and with a diameter usually ranging from 25 to 40 cm. There
are usually four, but sometimes 7 or 8 horseshoe-shaped gonads. These are very
conspicuous, due to the color (red, pink, magenta or blue) and the transparent bell.

The moon jelly feeds on plankton that sticks to its surface. During late fall or early
winter it disintegrate, as many other jellyfish. The offspring survives the winter as
larvae attached to the bottom. By asexual reproduction it forms stacks of platters
which are released in the spring to start their medusa phase.
Habitat:
It is usually found close to the surface, but may go deep under harsh weather
conditions.
Distribution:
This is a cosmopolitan found in northern boreal as well as tropical water. It is the
most common jellyfish in the North Sea.
http://www.seawater.no/fauna/cnidaria/aurita.html

Domain - Eukarya
Kingdom - Animalia
Phylum - Cnidaria
Class - Scyphozoa
Order - Semaestomeae
Family - Ulmaridae
Genus - Aurelia
Species - Aurelia aurita
Picture by Tom Volk

The classification of Aureilia aurita can be understood when a basic characteristics


of each level of classification is known.
Domain Eukarya is simply represented by organisms who have similar
characteristics such as a cell nucleus, a cytoskeleton, mitosis, and multiple, linear
DNA. All animals are included in this domain.
Kingdom Animalia consists of multicellular, non-photosynthetic organisms with no
cell walls.
Jellyfish and sea anemones are both part of the phylum Cnidaria. They are
multicellular, diploblastic, radial symmetric organisms with nematocysts.
Class Scyphozoa consists of cup animals and jellyfish. They are characterized by
having a polyp stage called scyphistoma and contracting/relaxing muscles along
base of their bell-shaped body.
Order Semaestomeae, to which Aurelia aurita grouped, is characterized by four oral
arms and a gastrovascular system of unbranched pouches and no ring canal.
Family Ulmaridae is simply a family of jellyfish.
Genus Aurelia basically consists of a variety of moon jellyfish, most well-known, of
course, is the species Aurelia aurita.
The reasons for the classification of Aurelia aurita is very understandable when the
characteristics of each group, stated above, are taken into consideration.

The figure above shows where Aurelia aurita are placed in the metazoan phylogenic
tree. Metazoans are simply multicellular organisms with differentiable tissues and
organs usually including a nervous system and digestive cavity.
Recall from above that Aurelia aurita is a scyphozoan belonging to the phylum
Cnidaria. The phylum Cnidaria is very closely related to the phylum Ctenophora
which consists of comb jellies. Both of these organisms are placed seperately from
the phylum Porifera (sponges) becasue the are eumetazoans. This means they
have a digestive tract while sponges do not. Moon Jellies do not have bilateral
symmetry and are thus not grouped with protostomes or deuterostomes.
Ultimately, sponges, comb jellies, moon jellies, and protostomes and deuterostomes
all relate back to a common protist ancestor.

http://bioweb.uwlax.edu/bio203/s2007/shull_step/classification.htm
As its name suggests, the common jellyfish (Aurelia aurita) is the most common
jellyfish species on British shores (2). The body is a saucer shaped 'bell', which is
colourless except for four obvious violet gonads visible in the centre of the
disc (2). The outer edges are fringed with many small tentacles, and four stocky
'arms' surround the mouth (2).
http://www.arkive.org/common-jellyfish/aurelia-aurita/

Taxon

Phylum

Authority

Recent

Cnidaria

(Linnaeus, 1758)

None

synonyms

Recorded
Distribution in
Britain and
Ireland

Aurelia aurita can be found all round the coasts of Britain and Ireland.

Habitat
information

Aurelia aurita is Britain's most common jellyfish. It is sporadic in its appe


some years. Aurelia aurita is a pelagic species but may be found washed
common in Scottish sea lochs.

Description

Aurelia aurita has a smooth, flattened saucer-shaped bell (the umbrella)


arms and gonads are typically mauve, violet, reddish, pink or yellowish in
cm. The umbrella is quite thick, thinning towards the edge, with numerou
by numerous stinging cells (nematocysts). There are four interfolded gon
and eight un-branched canals connect to the marginal ring-canal of the u
manubrium). Four thickened oral arms, each with a central groove, edge
long. The surface of the oral arms is covered with nematocysts, crowded
the umbrella. The stomach consists of four circular shaped interradial ga

Identifying
features

Additional
information

Umbrella thins towards the edge and has a distinctive fringe of sho

Four, purple-blue gonads form a characteristic horseshoe-shape, c

Gonads do not extend below the sub-umbrella surface as in many

Aurelia aurita has an interesting life history. The sexes are separate, the
oral arms act as a temporary brood chamber holding the eggs until they
planulae attach to hard substratum and develop into tiny sessile animals
immature jellyfish (ephyrae). The ephyrae feed on plankton and will gene
to grow into sexually-reproducing adult medusae (Ruppert & Barnes, 199

Aurelia aurita feed, but not exclusively, on plankton and can at times occ
slow the passage of small boats (Russell, 1970).

http://www.marlin.ac.uk/speciesinformation.php?speciesID=2687

Moon Jellyfish
Aurelia aurita
Moon Jellyfish Description
The Moon Jellyfish offers several subspecies. It is really impossible though to tell
them apart without taking samples of their DNA. They look too much alike in terms
of their physical appearance, however, they have no sexual reproduction organs
that determine this. Again, it is determined by their DNA profiling.
Before DNA profiling was established though all of the subspecies of the Moon
Jellyfish were lumped into one category. There are still those that argue they should
be but the experts maintain that due to the DNA differences they shouldnt be
considered only one species. This is why you will find conflicting names for them as
well as population numbers. It all comes down to the classifications that are being
used.
Class

Scyphozoa

Order

Semaeostomeae

Family

Ulmaridae

Genus

Aurelia

Conservation
status

Not evaluated

Moon Jellyfish Anatomy


There are four horseshoe shaped gonads that are found at the top of the bell for
the Moon Jellyfish. Their body is white in color and round which gives it the moon
shape. That is where their name derives from. They are very transparent too so
when the sun or the moon is shining on them they look just like the moon does all lit
up. They have very short tentacles in terms of what other species of Jellyfish offer.
When fully grown a Moon Jellyfish is typically from 25 to 40 centimeters wide. Due
to the round look of them they are often referred to as the Saucer Jelly. They may
have stripes or spots when they are younger around the middle of the bell area.
They have a centralized censoring system in their body that allows them to find
prey. They dont have a brain and only about 5% of their body is made up of
anything solid.
Moon Jellyfish Evolution
It isnt fully understood how long the Moon Jellyfish has been on Earth. There is
evidence though to suggest that some species have been for million years. Where
the branches have occurred to create the more than 1,500 species though are still
unknown.
Many experts believe that the overall functionality of the Moon Jellyfish has been
able to adapt over time to changes in temperature and allocation. They have also
been able to develop the toxins in their bodies to be able to protect them from
predators as well as to get their prey.

Moon Jellyfish Aurelia aurita


Moon Jellyfish Behavior
The Moon Jellyfish has a very limited ability to move where it would like to. The
current of the water and the wind is what takes it from one location to the next.
They dont use their body energy often to be able to try to swim around. This is why
they tend to like water that has currents that are constant. They spend most of their
life just drifting around in the ocean waters.
A sting from a Moon Jellyfish may hurt but it wont be fatal. Typically there is pain
and a small rash that is red and swollen will result. However, many people dont
even know that they have been stung by one due to the fact that they dont
penetrate well through skin. People that have thicker skin arent going to feel the
Moon Jellyfish like a child or someone with thinner skin would.
This particular type of Jellyfish tends to stay close to the surface of the water. Those
that know what they are looking for can avoid them. However, many people in the
water dont even realize what they see. This certainly isnt the physical appearance
of what must of us have in mind when we think about a Jellyfish.

This particular Jellyfish tends to live alone. However, there have been times when
they are known to be in groups known as blooms. This is due to them being at the
mercy of the current and the wind though. That is why they are often found in large
numbers on the shore.
Moon Jellyfish Habitat and Distribution
You will find this particular species of Jellyfish living everywhere in the oceans. They
live in the warm waters as well as those that are cooler. Europe and North America
are the most common locations for them. However, they have also been identified
along the waters of both Canada and New England.
Experts do believe that their numbers have been on the rise for the past couple of
decades. This could be due to the drop in various types of predators in those given
locations. One of the factors that has been believed to kill large numbers of the
Moon Jellyfish though is pollution. They have a thin body so various type of toxic
materials can cause diseases and other health problems that they cant overcome.

Two Moon Jellyfish or Saucer jelly


Moon Jellyfish Feeding Habits
Mollusks and plankton are what the Moon Jellyfish consumes. They will also
consume eggs and various types of mollusks. They have hearty appetites and will
consume food as often as they can. They have a very large stomach that allows
them to swallow food whole and then for it to be broken down. They need protein,
carbs, and lipids to survive.

The tentacles of the Moon Jellyfish allow it to capture prey. The tentacles have
powerful toxins that immobilize the prey long enough for them to swallow it. They
rely on digestive enzymes in the stomach lining to break down their prey.
The Moon Jellyfish tends to do very well living in captivity under the right conditions.
They will consume brine shrimp in such an environment and survival well on it.
Moon Jellyfish Reproduction
In the summer time the Moon Jellyfish will take part in offering eggs and sperm on a
daily basis. This is a process that will leave them weak and hungry. At the end of
that process they will likely die. They tend to only live about 6 months in the wild
from the time they are a full Jellyfish. This reproduction process can make them
vulnerable to various forms of bacteria too that can end their life sooner.
Moon Jellyfish Predators
There are several known predators of the Moon Jellyfish. They include Sea Turtles
that rely on them for food during their daily lives. However, they also rely heavily on
the Moon Jellyfish to supply them with food during their annual long migrational
journey. Other predators including birds that will feed upon them when they get
close to the shoreline.
Humans are also predators of the Moon Jellyfish. They often assume that they are
just as dangerous as any other type of Jellyfish. They dont like they idea of being in
the water with them. In some heavily populated tourist locations efforts have been
made to limit populations. These locations are worried that they could lose out on
the business of tourists of there are too many Moon Jellyfish around.

http://bioexpedition.com/moon-jellyfish/
Description
Umbrella flat, flexible, transparent; with eight simple marginal lobes arising
from exumbrella slightly above umbrella margin, shallowly almost imperceptibly
cleft between.
Marginal tentacles small, filiform, up to a few hundred to more than 1000 in large
specimens, arising nearly at bell edge. Subumbrellar musculature inconspicuous.
From stomach lead 16 unbranched adradial canals, the eight perradial and
eight interradial canals typically fork roughly dichotomously into branches, which
connect approximately straight toring canal.
Gonads invaginated, with external subgenital pits, appearing as four horseshoeshaped ribbons in the gastric cavity, conspicuous due to their colour and

transparency of bell.
The four unbranched oral arms as long as umbrella radius, tapered, V-shaped in
section, with thick firm mesogloea and much-crenulated lips with many
small tentacle-like processes along their margins [A.aurita-subumbrella ].
Oral arms in life typically held horizontally when young (when shorter
than bell radius), dangling down in older specimens (when longer than radius).
Size
Diameter of umbrella usually up to 250-400 mm.
Kingdom Animalia
Phylum Cnidaria
Superclass Scyphozoa
Class Scyphomedusae
Order Semaeostomae
Family Ulmaridae
Genus Aurelia
Species Aurelia aurita
http://species-identification.org/species.php?species_group=zmns&id=130

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