Jellyfish

Vocabulary

• Lion’s Mane Jellyfish – largest known species of jelly fish with distinctive red coloring and long, trailing tentacles (like a lion’s mane).
• Tentacles – a flexible, long, organ that flows from the each of the eight lobes on the bell of the jelly fish (70-150 tentacles from each lobe) and around the mouth (about 1,200 tentacles).
• Nematocysts (Cnidocyte) – explosive stinging cells on the jellyfish tentacles with a barbed tube and poisonous substance used to capture, draw in and digest prey.

Fun Facts

• The Lion’s Mane Jellyfish lives only 1 year, and its population spikes in August (and January) when they are grown in size and currents sweep them closer to shore.
• The Lion’s Mane Jellyfish has massive tentacles – the longest measured is 120 feet – making it one of the longest animals in the world.
• If stung, you can rub on sand to remove the barbs and white vinegar to take away the sting.
• Leatherback Sea Turtles feed almost exclusively on the Lion’s Mane Jellyfish.