Rhopilema nomadica | |
---|---|
Scientific classification | |
Domain: | Eukaryota |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Cnidaria |
Class: | Scyphozoa |
Order: | Rhizostomeae |
Family: | Rhizostomatidae |
Genus: | Rhopilema |
Species: | R. nomadica |
Binomial name | |
Rhopilema nomadica Galil, 1990 | |
Rhopilema nomadica, the nomad jellyfish, is a jellyfish indigenous to tropical warm waters of the Indian and Pacific Oceans. Since 1970's it has been also found in Mediterranean Sea, where it entered via the Suez Canal (Lessepsian migration). It has been found in the Eastern Mediterranean, [1] off the coast of Lebanon, Israel, Gaza, Cyprus, Turkey, and in the Aegean Sea off the coast of Greece. [2] R. nomadica's body is light blue and the bell is rounded. It can grow up to 10 kg of weight, and its bell is commonly 40–60 cm in diameter, but can be up to 90 cm. The European Union lists it as one of the worst invasive marine species in European waters.[ citation needed ]
R. nomadica can cause very painful injuries to humans, since it has vermicular filaments, which are covered in venomous stinging cells, in the mouth arms. The R. nomadica had caused the largest numbers of envenomisations along the southern Levant coast. These jellyfishes are notorious for the large swarms they form in the summertime. The R. nomadica have caused a socioeconomic problem in Israel because of such outbreaks, during which they can release their venomous stinging cells. The outbreak has caused seaside visits to be reduced from 3-10.5%, causing a monetary loss of $6 million for recreational beaches.[ citation needed ]
Their presence can clog up seawater intake systems, such as those used by seawater-cooled power plants. [3] [4]
R. nomadica are planktotrophic, meaning that they feed off of plankton for their nutritional and also for their survival needs.
R. nomadica are seen to survive in various water temperatures. They can survive from anywhere from 16 degree Celsius to 31 degree Celsius.[ citation needed ]
Jellyfish, also known as sea jellies, are the medusa-phase of certain gelatinous members of the subphylum Medusozoa, which is a major part of the phylum Cnidaria.
Pelagia noctiluca is a jellyfish in the family Pelagiidae and the only currently recognized species in the genus Pelagia. It is typically known in English as the mauve stinger, but other common names are purple-striped jelly, purple stinger, purple people eater, purple jellyfish, luminous jellyfish and night-light jellyfish. In Greek, pelagia means "(she) of the sea", from pelagos "sea, open sea"; in Latin noctiluca is the combining form of nox, "night"", and lux, "light"; thus, Pelagia noctiluca can be described as a marine organism with the ability to glow in the dark (bioluminescence). It is found worldwide in tropical and warm temperate seas, although it is suspected that records outside the North Atlantic region, which includes the Mediterranean and Gulf of Mexico, represent closely related but currently unrecognized species.
Carybdea is a genus of venomous box jellyfish within the family Carybdeidae that currently consists of a total of 8 species. This genus of jellyfish are often found in warm waters around the world in waters such as the Mediterranean Sea, the Pacific Ocean, and off the coast of Africa. Their sting can cause a range of effects depending on the species. These invertebrates will go through both sexual and asexual reproduction as they transform from a polyp to medusa. Carybdea have a box-shaped bell with four tentacles and eye-like sensory structures. There are distinct physical markings that differentiate many species within the genus. While Carybdea use their venom to act as predators, they are also preyed on by turtles and various fish. They feed on plankton, invertebrates, fish, and some crustaceans.
Phyllorhiza punctata is a species of jellyfish, also known as the floating bell, Australian spotted jellyfish, brown jellyfish or the white-spotted jellyfish. It is native to the western Pacific from Australia to Japan, but has been introduced widely elsewhere. It feeds primarily on zooplankton. P. punctata generally can reach up to 50 centimetres (20 in) in bell diameter, but in October 2007, one 74 cm (29 in) wide, perhaps the largest ever recorded, was found on Sunset Beach, North Carolina.
Cotylorhiza is a genus of true jellyfish from the family Cepheidae. The genus is found in the central-east Atlantic, Mediterranean, and western Indian Ocean.
The Lessepsian migration is the migration of marine species along the Suez Canal, usually from the Red Sea to the Mediterranean Sea, and more rarely in the opposite direction. When the canal was completed in 1869, fish, crustaceans, mollusks, and other marine animals and plants were exposed to an artificial passage between the two naturally separate bodies of water, and cross-contamination was made possible between formerly isolated ecosystems. The phenomenon is still occurring today. It is named after Ferdinand de Lesseps, the French diplomat in charge of the canal's construction.
Diadema setosum is a species of long-spined sea urchin belonging to the family Diadematidae. It is a typical sea urchin, with extremely long, hollow spines that are mildly venomous. D. setosum differs from other Diadema with five, characteristic white dots that can be found on its body. The species can be found throughout the Indo-Pacific region, from Australia and Africa to Japan and the Red Sea. Despite being capable of causing painful stings when stepped upon, the urchin is only slightly venomous and does not pose a serious threat to humans.
Jellyfish dermatitis is a cutaneous condition caused by stings from a jellyfish.
Marivagia is a monotypic genus of jellyfish, containing only the species, Marivagia stellata, that was first described in 2010 following the discovery of several specimens on the Mediterranean coast of Israel.
Fishing in Israel is a branch of the Israeli economy with historical significance. The three main natural fishing zones are the Mediterranean Sea, the Gulf of Aqaba, and the Kinneret. A fourth area that was once historically significant, Lake Hula, no longer exists, as it was drained in the 1950s. In addition, aquaculture the growth of fish in ponds or in cages, is rising in prominence.
Plotosus lineatus, commonly known as the striped eel catfish, is a species of eeltail catfishes belonging to the family Plotosidae. Like most other members of the genus Plotosus, they possesses highly venomous spines that they can use to sting when threatened. The venom can cause mild to severe symptoms in humans. P. lineatus is native to the Indo-Pacific but has become introduced to the Mediterranean via the Suez Canal as a Lessepsian migrant.
The dusky spinefoot, also known the squaretail rabbitfish,is a species of marine ray-finned fish, a rabbitfish belonging to the family Siganidae. It is native to the western Indian Ocean which has spread to the Mediterranean Sea through the Suez Canal. Its fin spines contain venom. It is regarded as a food fish.
Carybdea marsupialis is a venomous species of box jellyfish, in the small family Carybdeidae within the class Cubozoa.
Rhopilema verrilli, or mushroom cap jellyfish, is a species of jellyfish in the family Rhizostomatidae. They are cnidarian invertebrates distinguished by their mushroom-shaped medusae. The species does not have any tentacles; however, they still have stinging cells, called nematocysts, within their bells, which can produce mild stings to humans.
Charybdis longicollis, the lesser swimming crab, is a species of crab from the swimming crab family, the Portunidae. It has a native range which covers the north-western Indian Ocean and it has invaded the Mediterranean Sea by Lessepsian migration through the Suez Canal.
Sanderia malayensis is a species of jellyfish in the family Pelagiidae, native to the tropical Indo-Pacific. It has a complex life cycle and is thought to be venomous and to have caused injuries to humans.
Jellyfish blooms are substantial growths in population of species under the phyla Cnidaria and Ctenophora.
Aurelia coerulea or Asian moon jelly is a species of moon jelly in the genus Aurelia. This species is native to the seas off Japan, China, Korea, and California, as well as the Mediterranean and other temperate seas. and they can also be found in coastal areas of China, Korea, California, the Mediterranean and other temperate seas. It is particularly abundant in artificial habitats and sheltered regions. It has a very high reproductive rate which can cause blooming events. A.coerulea blooming causes problems such as impairing fisheries, clogging the nuclear power plants and disrupting the local zooplankton abundance. The chemical compounds the species secretes as a self-defense mechanism can be used for pharmaceutical purposes.
Acromitus flagellatus is a species of jellyfish in the Catostylidae family, suborder Dactyliophorae. It was discovered in 1903 by Otto Maas in the Malay Archipelago, and is closely related to Nemopilema nomurai and Rhopilema esculentum Other species in the genus Acromitus include A. hardenbergi,A. maculosus,A. rabanchatu, and A. tankahkeei.A. flagellatus get their name from their long flagellum and their oral arms that are as about as long as the diameter of their bell, while other species in the genus, like A. hardenbergi, have oral arms that are about half the length of their bell.
But they are a particular bane to the Israel Electric Corp., which has five seawater-cooled power stations along the Mediterranean coast. The stations installed filters over their seawater intake systems, but when the jellyfish swarm, they can overwhelm the systems, the company told Haaretz.
Our coal-fired power stations are located by the sea because it takes a lot of water to cool them down," Israel Electric Corp spokeswoman Iris Ben-Shahal told Haaretz. "At that entry point of the water into the cooling systems, we have filters to keep foreign bodies out. The jellyfish, and other things like sea plants, stick to the filters and clog them.
5. Uysal, İ., & Turan, C. (2020). Impacts and risk of venomous and sting marine alien species in Turkish marine waters. Biharean Biologist, 14(1), 41-8.
Jellyfish Monitoring Program of Turkey: http://dogavebilim.com/denizanasi/