Photo credit: www.adlayasanimals.wordpress.com
Have you ever wondered what it would be like if you could walk on the ceiling?
Well that’s how the velella velella jellyfish live their lives!
Velella velellas or by-the-wind sailors live on the surface of the open sea far from any shore and are transported for miles by the ocean winds. There can be hundreds of them floating along spanning hundreds of square feet.
They are part of the animal group known as Hydrozoa, which is a subset of the Cnidarian family. Cnidarian is a family of stinging animals that include coral, anemones, and “normal” jellyfish.
Photo credit: www.boingboing.net via MBARI
Typically hydrozoids attach to rocks or coral on the seafloor and floating appendages used for feeding and reproduction grow upward. Velella velella are most closely related to a Hydrozoa sub group whose body has one main mouth, tentacles for grabbing food, and medusa producing structures.
Photo credit: www.boingboing.net via MBARI
Since the velella velella live in open water they attach themselves to the largest area they can- the ocean’s surface. They are a benthic organism living in an inverted world. They use the surface as the seafloor and live in their world upside down.
Neat, right?
Well, that’s not the only trick they have!
Similar to plants using photosynthesis, these creatures have cells that harvest, store, and later use solar energy from the sun!
Living on the surface all the time makes you wonder if they ever get burnt. They don’t. These unique creatures have a blue pigmentation that shields them from the sun’s rays.
Photo credit: www.utaot.com
One more amazing fact about these creatures is that when they reproduce their babies are smaller than two millimeters!
Photo credit: www.boingboing.net via MBARI
Pretty cool creatures, huh? If you want to learn more about velella velella, check out this video posted by the Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute.
Source: www.boingboing.net via Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute