reference book on gelatinous sea creatures

[maractwin]

Can anyone recommend a reference book that's helpful in identifying gelatinous sea creatures (jellyfish, comb jellies, siphonophores, etc)? I'm interested in both the Caribbean and the south Pacific, though I realize there may not be a single book that covers both.

Thanks,
-Mark

 

[bdrannik]

This thread caught my eye as I've occasionally been referred to as a gelatinous sea creature myself..

 

[archman]

Claudia Mills has a great jelly plankton book for California waters, but a great deal of it is applicable around the world. Outstanding pictures and descriptions. I forget the name, but it's cheap and easy to procure. This is the best book out there for the sort of stuff you seem to want.

 

[maractwin]

Looking at what Amazon has on this book, it looks like it covers the material well for the West Coast. However, it's missing some common East Coast/Caribbean species I tried searching for (i.e. no Mnemiopsis comb jellies). I'd love to find something better suited to my area.

-Mark

 

[archman]

For the visual observer, the next best thing for the Caribbean would be Humann's generic reef creatures guide. Not even remotely as detailed with most jelly plankton as Claudia Mill's book, but it does better refine it's specimens to those found in the Caribbean.

There really aren't that many comb jelly species in the world, I think it's hovering just over 60 at present. Many of the tropical genera (Beroe, Pleurobranchia) are the same as those off of California, and look identical. Mnemiopsis is an exception. If you can tag a comb jelly to genus visually, you're pretty dang good!