The ocean nearly takes about 75% of the total earth’s area, and it’s a hotbed for some unique and unusual creatures that scientists are still discovering. More and more unusual water animals wash up on beaches and shores all around the world as time passes. A unique creature from the ocean that proves to be attractive to the scientist, in general, is the immortal jellyfish. Well, just the name is enough to make you wonder what earned the jellyfish the grandiose moniker.
Facts about Immortal Jellyfish
- The immortal jellyfish scientific name is Turritopsis Nutricula. It was discovered back in 1883 in the Mediterranean Sea. However, it’s exceptionally unique regeneration was not known to scientists and researchers until the 1990s.
- The regeneration process of the mature immortal jellyfish is unique. Whenever it’s starving or injured, it will attach itself to the surface in warm waters and turn into a sort of living blob. From the blob state, immortal jellyfish cells will undergo a process that is known as trans-differentiation.
- Trans-differentiation is a process where immortal jellyfish’s cells will turn into different kinds of cells. For example, the egg cells of the immortal jellyfish will turn into sperm cells or even muscle cells. The Nerve cells may also turn into egg cells, and this means that the immortal jellyfish has transformation abilities. There’s no other animal that is known to have these skills.
- Ever since the immortal jellyfish’s discovery in the Mediterranean Sea, more identical species came in sight in places like Spain, Japan, and even the Atlantic Ocean side of Panama. The reason why Immortal Jellyfish are so widespread is that they are caught in ballast water that comes from ocean cargo vessels.
- Though most of the Immortal Jellyfish species are generally genetically the same, they have come up with different physical adaptations depending on their environments. For example, specimens species found in tropical waters have eight tentacles, while ones from hotter temperate regions have 24 tentacles.
- Despite having the immortal tag, these jellyfish do die. For example, Immortal Jellyfish still get eaten by their predators, and the trans-differentiation only starts when they have become mature. If they get sick as polyps or starve, they do not regenerate cells and therefore die.
- The main diet of immortal jellyfish usually consists of plankton, tiny mollusks, and fish eggs.
- The immortal jellyfish are small, and they also sting, but they are not poisonous like the box jellyfish, which are too small.
- If you are looking to see an immortal jellyfish in the ocean, be aware that these creatures are barely visible. Immortal jellyfish is bell-shaped, and it’s maximum 4.5mm or 0.18 inch tall and wide. They are very tiny creatures. Younger immortal jellyfish have only eight tentacles and are 1 mm tall, while the adult immortal jellyfish can have up to 90 tentacles.
