The South American sea nettle (''Chrysaora plocamia'') is a species of

jellyfish Jellyfish and sea jellies are the informal common names given to the medusa-phase of certain gelatinous members of the subphylum Medusozoa, a major part of the phylum Cnidaria. Jellyfish are mainly free-swimming marine animals with umbrella- ...

from the family

Pelagiidae The Pelagiidae are a family of jellyfish. Members of the family ''Pelagiidae'' have no ring canal, and the marginal tentacles arise from umbrella margin. Genera There are four genera currently recognized: *Genus ''Chrysaora'' – (14 species) *G ...

. It is found from the Pacific coast of Peru, south along Chile's coast to

Tierra del Fuego Tierra del Fuego (, ; Spanish for "Land of the Fire", rarely also Fireland in English) is an archipelago off the southernmost tip of the South American mainland, across the Strait of Magellan. The archipelago consists of the main island, Isla G ...

, and north along the Atlantic coast of Argentina, with a few records from Uruguay. Despite its common name, it is not the only

sea nettle ''Chrysaora'' () is a genus of jellyfish, commonly called the sea nettles, in the family Pelagiidae. The origin of the genus name ''Chrysaora'' lies in Greek mythology with Chrysaor, brother of Pegasus and son of Poseidon and Medusa. Translated, ...

in South America; '' C. lactea'' ranges along the Atlantic coast of the continent, but generally further north than ''C. plocamia''. Historically, ''C. plocamia'' was often confused with '' C. hysoscella'', a species now known to be restricted to the northeast Atlantic. ''C. plocamia'' is a large jellyfish, up to in bell diameter, although most mature individuals only are .

Reproduction

The South American sea nettle is highly evolved, specifically within their sexual reproductive strategies. They have to undergo bodily changes in order to experience both sexual and asexual reproduction then go through a process called strobilation.

References

Chrysaora Animals described in 1830 {{scyphozoa-stub