10 of the Most Beautiful Jellyfish in the World

Jellyfish are in the animal group of Cnidaria and among the most beautiful and unusual creatures of water life. Listed below are the ten most beautiful jellyfish you can find in the worlds oceans.

1. Aequorea Victoria

Also known as the crystal jellyfish, this species is colorless and transparent in appearance and inhabits the west coast of North America. Its tentacles have nematocysts which aid in capture of prey. It has been used in science as it has a protein called GFP, which is responsible for the fluorescent blue green color of jellyfish. This protein has been used in scientific experiments such as creating a rabbit that glows under black lights! GFP has been useful in studying cell processes to give an insight in getting a solution to serious health problems such as Alzheimer’s.

2. Australian Box Jellyfish

This is the most dangerous jellyfish and also goes by the name Sea Wasp. It is cube shaped and frightening in appearance. It moves faster than most jellyfish and is difficult to see because of its transparent appearance. They have a mutant appearance due to multiple eyeballs on their stomachs. It is the most poisonous creature of the seas because of its high concentration of nematocysts and can kill dozens of humans with its poison. And due to their transparent appearance and their not easily detectable sting, they are referred to as “sucker punch” of the sea.

3. Bathykorus Bouilloni

This is a deep-sea jellyfish that inhabits the Arctic. It was first discovered ten years ago and not much is known about it. A lot of attention was focused on it dues to its discovery and because of its striking resemblance to Darth Vader. It has four primary and four secondary tentacles. Every quadrant has three interradial manubrial pouches. It holds out its poisoned tentacles in front as it swims, this being a hunting strategy for its prey. They have few, non-contractile tentacles. They have an unusual axis of development from larvae to adult.

4. Costa Rican Jellyfish

It also goes by the name Stauromedusae, a befitting name due its strange appearance. It is the stalked variety of jellyfish. Their body is trumpet shaped body. They are a unique jellyfish since they do not have an alternation of polyp and medusa life cycle phases and mostly develop directly into the adult form. They are found in the Costa Rica waters, which tend to be quite hot and have a depth of more than 8000 feet below sea level. They are generally different from other jellyfish as they tend to be dark pink in color.

5. Flower Hat Jelly

This jellyfish is a rare species and is generally small in size with a width of just about six inches. It is also known as Olindias Formosa and is very striking with shades of purple and orange colours. It has appearance of having a neon pink flower hat on its head. This is because its tentacles, when not in use, coil up and sticks to the rim. It has a painful sting but non-lethal to humans. It mainly feeds on small fish capturing its prey by injecting venom from its stinging cells its tentacles. It inhabits Brazil, Argentina and Japanese waters.

6. Foot Long Tentacles Jellyfish

This jellyfish is believed to be twelve-inch long and inhabits frozen waters beneath the West Antarctic ice and shares similar world like the Costa Rican Jellyfish which inhabits very cold waters of about 600 degrees. Its body is soft, squishy and tube shaped. It is brown, reddish brown to orange in color, with distinctive white spots on their foot. It uses its venomous cells in its tentacles to sting to defend itself against possible threats. It can be a difficult pet to care for since it needs a lot of light and a large aquarium to accommodate its size.

7. Moon Jellyfish

It also goes by the names Aurelia Aurita, Saucer Jelly or Common Jelly. It is generally admired for its striking and beautiful features. It is among the most common jellyfish that most are familiar with. It has magically pulsating movements. It has been variously described, one of these descriptions being that is has a translucent medusa of about 25–40 cm in diameter, and has a unique features of four horseshoe-shaped gonads easily observed through the bell top. It mainly feeds on medusae, plankton and mollusks. These jellyfish naturally dies in a few months after reproducing, making their life cycle short.

8. Nomura’s jellyfish

It also goes by the name Nomuras. It was named after Mr. Kan’ichi Nomura who initiated more study to be done on it. It is mainly found off the Japanese coast. It is of enormous size, many times bigger than man. It may be as huge as hundred feet in length and a diameter of six feet or more and in excess of 450 pounds in weight. Normura’s Jellyfish exists in the same size class as the lion’s mane jellyfish and can be deadly. There has been an increase in its population, which has led to its promotion as a novelty food.

9. Phialella Zappai

This jellyfish has an eye-catching name, this is because it is named after a musician called Frank Zappa. This honour is attributed to the discovery of this jellyfish by a scientist who was a fan of the musician. As a result of having given the said musician this honour, the scientist finally did get an opportunity of meeting his musician star face to face. They grow rapidly continue to develop with their tentacles increasing n size and number.

10. Rhopilema Esculentum

This is an edible kind of jellyfish though it is said that their stings are harmful to man and that is where the paradox lies! It is also known as the ‘China type’ and are slightly reddish with a smooth umbrella which is 300-600mm in diameter. They are farmed in Japan where they also form part of the Japanese diet. It is one of the most abundant and important water species in China.