New research shows mining of the deep ocean floor for rare minerals could harm deep-sea jellyfish by stressing them out with sediment plumes, suggests a study of how resource harvesting might affect the helmet jellyfish (Periphylla periphylla), a luminescent red-colored cnidarian of the deep sea.
While deep sea animals provide important ecosystem functions including climate regulation, species-specific responses to stressors remain poorly understood. Researchers collected helmet jellyfish and exposed them to sediment at concentrations that could be churned up by mining. After a day, the animals had mucus covering much of their bodies, among other signs that they were really not well, being stressed and using a lot of energy to rid out of the floating sediment, which could be harmful over extended periods.
Suspended sediment plumes provoked the most acute and energetically costly response through the production of excess mucus. Microbial symbionts appeared to be unaffected by both stressors, with mucus production maintaining microbial community composition. If these responses are representative for other gelatinous fauna, an abundant component of pelagic ecosystems, the effects of planned exploitation of seafloor resources may impair deep pelagic biodiversity and ecosystem functioning.
Photo by Bjørnar Solhaug
Reference (Open Access): Stenvers et al., 2023. Experimental mining plumes and ocean warming trigger stress in a deep pelagic jellyfish. Nature Communications
so like, Atollidae (the family of Atolla Jellyfish) is called "ヒラタカムリクラゲ科" in Japanese (translating to "Flat Crown Jellyfish" in English- very literal). This is a little weird, since the jellyfish in the family are known as "Purple Crown Jellyfish"
meanwhile, the family Periphyllidae is known simply as "クロカムリクラゲ科," or just "Black Crown Jellyfish"
which is funny considering that the jellyfish in this family are also known as "Black Crown Jellyfish" (I suspect the family is simply named after the common name of the animal, haha)
I'm not sure why I find it so funny tbh 🤔🤔, the fact that they decide to be literal with the family Atollidae while sticking to the common name with the family Periphyllidae is just a little weird to me ig?
When it comes to the common names, the naming conventions are eerily similar ("Purple Crown Jellyfish" and "Black Crown Jellyfish"), so ig the family names not reflecting this is kind of funny
All different kinds of Portuguese man o' war, or "toucanets" (Tetraclinis georgiana) as they are called in the US because the US has many more species (the toucanets have the longest tentacle arms of the man o' war species)
Dahlgren's petrel, a little bird with long feathers and a funny face who lives in the southern ocean and dives for prey, or "a little bit of hell" (Pterodroma levaillantii) as he is also called, because he has a very large head and his face is very long and narrow
Humboldt squid (Sepioteuthis humboldti) because they're so cool
Giant Australian cuttlefish, or cuttlefish (there are only two or three known species, but they vary widely in coloration and they look so goofy)
Lampworking jellies (Argyrosoma unifasciatum), because they look cool, too
Puffins (Fratercula arctica), especially the great auk, because they are so rare
Plate jellyfish, Periphylla periphylla, because the name is a mouthful
Swimming crabs (Portunus trituberculatus) because they are so funny
I need a new one, but I have a lot of favorites in general: ctenophore, nemertean, phoronid, chiton, brachiopod (one species, of course), sea anemone, giant isopod, polychaete (that is, a worm, but one of the many species of the worm family), and cuttlefish-relative, the ghost-jellyfish Opisthoteuthis californiana (which looks like something's missing but is actually really cute) because they have cool eyes
The Helmet Jelly can be found at all depths of the ocean. This vibrant and strange jellyfish tends to proliferate in Norwegian fjords. They are one of the dominant predators in these isolated ecosystems.