Moon Jellies - (Aurelia aurita)
Jellyfish
Australian National Maritime Museum
Named for their ghostly, translucent bells, they are abundant in temperate and tropical waters worldwide. Their delicate bodies pulse and drift with effortless grace. The moon jelly's short tentacles are armed with stinging cells, called "nematocysts," but the sting lacks the toxic, painful punch of other jellies. Although they're 95 percent water, moon jellies are the main course for leatherback sea turtles and other marine creatures. Thousands of animals die annually from mistakenly swallowing drifting plastic bags, which resemble the gelatinous jellies.
2012
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