''Chrysaora melanaster'', commonly known as the northern sea nettle or brown jellyfish, 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- ...

native to the northern Pacific Ocean and adjacent parts of the Arctic Ocean. It is sometimes referred to as a Pacific sea nettle, but this name is also used for '' C. fuscescens''; the name Japanese sea nettle was also used for this species, but that name now exclusively refers to '' C. pacifica''. Although jellyfish kept in

public aquarium A public aquarium (plural: ''public aquaria'' or ''public Water Zoo'') is the aquatic counterpart of a zoo, which houses living aquatic animal and plant specimens for public viewing. Most public aquariums feature tanks larger than those kept b ...

s sometimes are referred to as ''C. melanaster'', this is the result of the historical naming confusion and these actually are ''C. pacifica''.

Description

The medusa of the northern sea nettle can reach in diameter with tentacles growing up to .

CNET ''CNET'' (short for "Computer Network") is an American media website that publishes reviews, news, articles, blogs, podcasts, and videos on technology and consumer electronics globally. ''CNET'' originally produced content for radio and televi ...

news
Chrysaora melanaster
from "Census of Marine Life reveals hidden life in oceans" article (October 5, 2010). The number of tentacles is up to 24 (three per octant). It dwells at depths of up to 100 meters, where it feeds on

copepod Copepods (; meaning "oar-feet") are a group of small crustaceans found in nearly every freshwater and saltwater habitat (ecology), habitat. Some species are planktonic (inhabiting sea waters), some are benthos, benthic (living on the ocean floor) ...

larvacean Larvaceans or appendicularians, class Appendicularia, are solitary, free-swimming tunicates found throughout the world's oceans. Like most tunicates, larvaceans are filter feeders. Unlike most other tunicates, they keep their tadpole-like shape a ...

s, small fish, large

zooplankton Zooplankton are the animal component of the planktonic community ("zoo" comes from the Greek word for ''animal''). Plankton are aquatic organisms that are unable to swim effectively against currents, and consequently drift or are carried along by ...

, and other jellies. The sting is mild, although can cause serious skin irritation and burning. The lifespan is unknown.

Habitat

The northern sea nettle is found in open water of temperate northern Pacific Ocean, Arctic Ocean and especially the

Bering Sea The Bering Sea (, ; rus, Бе́рингово мо́ре, r=Béringovo móre) is a marginal sea of the Northern Pacific Ocean. It forms, along with the Bering Strait, the divide between the two largest landmasses on Earth: Eurasia and The Ameri ...

Ecology

Pollock Pollock or pollack (pronounced ) is the common name used for either of the two species of North Atlantic marine fish in the genus ''Pollachius''. ''Pollachius pollachius'' is referred to as pollock in North America, Ireland and the United Kingd ...

can be both the food of the northern sea nettle and also the competitor for potentially limited sources of prey.

Status

The total biomass of the northern sea nettle has increased in recent years as climate change has caused a more stable and productive surface layer. This increased stability of the water column would also have contributed to the warmer surface temperatures found in late summer in the 1990s, leading to increased growth and survival of the northern sea nettle.

References

Chrysaora Articles containing video clips Animals described in 1835 Taxa named by Johann Friedrich von Brandt {{scyphozoa-stub