Comb jellies?

[RIOceanographer]

How is "Mnemiopsis" pronounced?

Knee-me-op-sis

 

[archman]

Most ctenophores don't bioluminesce. What you are looking at are iridescent cells that appear to be giving off their own light, but are in fact merely reflecting back someone else's light. In fish these are called iridiophores... not having my authorities handy I cannot check for the official title for the cells found in comb jellies.

 

[RIOceanographer]

Most ctenophores don't bioluminesce. What you are looking at are iridescent cells that appear to be giving off their own light, but are in fact merely reflecting back someone else's light. In fish these are called iridiophores... not having my authorities handy I cannot check for the official title for the cells found in comb jellies.

Most comb jellies actually are bioluminescent. They emit bright blue or green light in the dark.

The cilia bands on most of them are also iridescent, which is what you are talking about. This is "in addition to" not "instead of" bioluminescence in most ctenophores. The iridescence appears as rainbow bands of pulsating colors. The pulsating of the colors is due to the motion of the cilia in the comb rows. As you said this is merely reflection of ambient light and you cannot see this effect in the dark. The blue bioluminescence can only be seen in the dark.

I found a link at Harbor Branch's bioluminescence site that has a picture comparing both effects. After following this link click on the "click here" in the text to see the picture of bioluminescence.

http://www.biolum.org/marine/biolum2/middle/livinglights/lljelly3content.html

 

[gfisher4792]

There are things that eat them like the ocean sunfish Mola mola, but they don't appear to have any natural predators in Narragansett Bay.

What are the populations of lion's mane jellies out there like? I know from research projects over this way that the Niantic River is a favored breeding ground for lion's mane, and they feast on all the comb jellies.

 

[RIOceanographer]

What are the populations of lion's mane jellies out there like? I know from research projects over this way that the Niantic River is a favored breeding ground for lion's mane, and they feast on all the comb jellies.

I had never heard of the lion's mane preying on ctenophores before, cool.

We have plenty of the lion's manes here. I was even stung across my upper lip by one on a dive a few weeks back.....

 

[archman]

Most comb jellies actually are bioluminescent. They emit bright blue or green light in the dark.

I just got served!

 

[gfisher4792]

I had never heard of the lion's mane preying on ctenophores before, cool.

We have plenty of the lion's manes here. I was even stung across my upper lip by one on a dive a few weeks back.....

Here's a pic of a lion's mane (obviously small one) eating a comb jelly.

 

[waterkitty]

I had never heard of the lion's mane preying on ctenophores before, cool.

We have plenty of the lion's manes here. I was even stung across my upper lip by one on a dive a few weeks back.....

As was I...on the lips and then on the legs a few days later.... :ignore:

 

[Rick Murchison]

I just got served!

What? You didn't believe me?

Rick

 

[maractwin]

Today I captured a couple of comb jellies (Mnemiopsis leidyi) and have them in an aquarium at home. The definately do luminesce, but only when disturbed. They they make little blue-green flashes.

-Mark