Dinner plate jelly

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Dinner plate jelly (Photo © 2001 MBARI)

At the Aquarium

Natural History

This jelly feeds by swimming slowly with its tentacles stretched out. When animals bump into the tentacles, stinging cells fire and hold on. Depending on the size of the prey, it can take a jelly up to two hours to move food from its tentacles to its stomach.

These jellies are very active swimmers. They change their swimming speed by changing the intensity of their bell contractions and can swim at a pace of about 60 feet (18 m) per hour.

Conservation

Anything that finds its way into the ocean—whether it's tossed away as trash or washed off a beach or boat—may eventually make its way to the deep sea. It's important to realize that the deep sea is not so far away that it's beyond the reach of human activities. Living creatures in the deep are affected by what we do at the surface.

Cool Facts

Solmissus is a dominant predator in the midwater zone of Monterey Bay.