Jellyfish By: Kayla Nguyen Jellyfish Outline♡
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VII.
Introduction
Body Parts
A. Bell
B. Oral Arms
C. Nematocyst
D. No Brain, Heart, And gills
Mating
A. Reproductive Cells
B. Male
C. Female
Diet
A. Zooplankton
B. Small Fish
C. Other Jellyfish (some)
Predators
A. Tuna
B. Shark
C. Swordfish
D. Sea Turtles
E. Pacific Salmon
Life Cycle Of Jellyfish
A. Egg
B. Planula Larva
C. Polyp
D. Budding Polyp
E. Ephyra (young jellyfish)
F. Medusa (adult jellyfish)
Conclusion
Introduction❤ There was a jellyfish just swaying in the deep, blue sea...when a big sea turtle comes up behind and CHOP! The turtle takes a big bite of the jellyfish. A jellyfish can be a scrumptious snack, but jellyfishes are also very interesting creatures with a lot of ways to survive. Body Parts❤ In the clear body of a jellyfish, you will see nothing but maybe a fish that it ate earlier. That’s because a jellyfish has no heart, brain, or gills (that means they are not fish)! Jellyfishes are in a group called cnidarians. All cnidarians have a soft, jelly-like skin, tentacles, and stinging cells called nematocyst. Did you know that a jellyfish’s tissue is so thin that oxygen can go right through it? A bell is a group of stinging tentacles. They are on the outside of the umbrella shaped jellyfish. The oral arms are around the mouth. Females carry eggs on their oral arms. They are long tubes. The nematocyst may be in the bell, tentacles, or mouth. Some of these parts help the jellyfish to survive. Mating❤ Jellyfishes have reproductive organs that let them mate. They are in the lining of its stomach. In jellyfish that have clear bodies (not all of them do), you can see the reproductive organs. They are the circles in the middle. You can see them in the picture above. To mate, the male lets reproductive cells into the water through his mouth. The female then takes in the reproductive cells and uses it to fertilize her eggs. That’s how jellyfish mate. Diet❤ A jellyfish’s diet can be pretty unusual. A jellyfish will eat anything it can catch. Most of the creatures are small. These mini creatures include zooplankton, small fish, and young blue crab. Some jellyfishes eat other jellyfish. Jellyfishes eat their prey whole. I was surprised to learn that the upside-down jellyfish produces its own food by photosynthesis. On the top of the jellyfish, there are brown spots. The spots are algae. All of these things are on the menu of a jellyfish. Predators❤ The predators of jellyfishes can be really big. Jellyfishes are an important part of the ocean’s food chain. They are delicious to many kinds of animals including tuna, salmon, sharks,​ swordfish, and sea turtles. Some of these predators are immune to the sting of the jellyfish, but others are hurt by eating the jellyfish. A sea turtle is going to continue eating a jellyfish even though it stings its eyes. Sadly, some sea turtles mistake plastic bags or balloons for jellyfish. They end up choking to death. Keep your plastic bags out of the ocean. It can cause damage to the food chain. Life Cycle Of A Jellyfish❤ Have you ever wanted to know about the life cycle of a jellyfish? Well, now is the time! Let’s start with the ​eggs​. The mother waits until the eggs grow into a flat and tiny ​larva​. This is the next stage. When the larva is ready, the mother lets it go. This little creature drifts off to find a hard surface to stick on. This creature is called the ​planula larva​. When the larva settles down, it becomes a ​polyp​, which is the name of the next stage. The polyp can’t move. It looks like a plant, but after a few months pass by, a dent starts to cut through turning the polyp into a stack of discs (about 0.3 cm across). This is called the ​budding polyp​. The budding polyp will swim away and grow into the second to last stage called the ​ephyra​. An ephyra is a young jellyfish. In a few weeks, the ephyra grows into a medusa​. The medusa is a full-grown jellyfish.
Jellyfish And Us​❤ If you ever see a jellyfish at the beach, be sure to look at it. You can touch it, but be careful, you might get get stung! It might look harmless, but it is very painful to get a sting. What do you think a jellyfish would feel like? I think it would feel like a soft, slippery, and squishy texture. I have never gotten stung before. Jellyfishes are interesting creatures with a lot of ways to survive. Works Cited Books: ● The Jellyfish​ ​by Miriam J. Gross ● Discovering Jellyfish by Lorijo Metz Websites: ● https://www.cnet.com/news/watch-ajellyfish-sting-in-microscopic-slo-mo/ ● http://www.chesapeakebay.net/fieldg
uide/critter/jellyfish