Common Name: Stinging Sea Nettle
Scientific Name: Chrysaora quinquecirrha
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Cnidaria
Class: Scyphozoa
Order: Semaeostomeae
Family: Pelagiidae
Genus: Chrysaora
Species: C. quinquecirrha
The Chrysaoro quinquecirrha, otherwise known as the stinging sea nettle, has a bell-shaped invertebrate which is semi-transparent, small, white dots, and reddish-brown stripes. Or there are sea nettles that don’t have stripes have a bell that is white or opaque. Its mouth is located at the center of one of the body; it opens to gastro vascular cavity, which is used for digestion. To capture food it has surrounding tentacles around the mouth. Sea nettles have no excretory or respiratory organs; sea nettles are free-swimming and can produce both sexually and asexually.
Sea Nettles are carnivores; they generally feed on zoo plankton, ctenophores, other jellies, and crustacians. Using their stinging tentacles they obtain and immobilize their prey. They will inject toxins, which will kill the small prey and paralyze the larger ones. The Sea nettle is commonly found in the Atlantic Estuaries. Lately they have been found in Chesapeake Bay due to large amounts of human activity.
Each nettle tentacle is coated with thousands of microscopic nematocysts. Every nematocysts has a “trigger” paired with a capsule containing a coiled stinging filament. Once triggered by contact will start the process which will eject venom-coated filament from its capsule onto the prey. Rather than toxic substances, some nematocysts contain adhesion used to entangle or anchor its target.
Author: Dallas S
Published: 03/2008
Sources:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sea_nettle
http://www.animalpicturesarchive.com/view.php?tid=3&did=27283