Jellyfish are not an uncommon sight along Nova Scotia’s seashores in July. Yet, their translucent colors tend to blend in well with the reddish brown seaweed on the beach and are easy to miss if you’re not watching where you step.
By the time they’re washed ashore, jellyfish have lost most of their magnificent bodily form. My best guess for the one shone beached above is that it is a Lion’s Mane Jellyfish (Cyanea capillata). In the drawing at left, I’ve attempted to show what it may have looked like while floating in the ocean.
Jellyfish are not fish at all, but rather marine animals without backbones that reveal a radial symmetry. They possess tentacles with stinging cells that allow them to capture their prey: zooplankton and small fish. Larger jellyfish will also eat smaller ones.
Leatherback sea turtles are attracted to our waters in search of jellyfish during the summer months. Seabirds and large fish also eat jellyfish.
Lion’s Mane jellyfish enjoy our cooler waters and tend to not venture into warmer Atlantic seas. They vary greatly in size. The largest ever, with a diameter of 7-1/2 feet, was washed ashore in Massachussetts towards the southern tip of its range.
Though its sting is not fatal, this type of jellyfish and others, if found ashore or swimming nearby, should not be touched. Their stings can still cause severe pain with reactions dependent on the size, age and health of the victim. Sea turtles and their other predators don’t seem to be affected by them.
Below, a seagull dines on crab near the spot where the jellyfish was sighted at Rainbow Haven Beach.
Amy, more synchronicity! I love it. Would you mind going on my blog and telling me what kind of jellyfish I took a picture of yesterday? Now that I see your post I think maybe it was Lion’s Mane, too. But I couldn’t identify it.
They are beautiful, and your drawing is an exquisite rendering. Thanks
Anne, I checked out your photos of the ‘Beautiful Swimmer’ at
http://novascotiaisland.blogspot.com/2010/07/beautiful-swimmers.html and it does look like images I’ve seen of swimming Lion’s Mane jellyfish. Very cool that between us we were able to produce views of such similar creatures in different environments.
Thanks, Amy! Cool indeed…
Amy-Lynn, your drawing is beautiful. And that third image–is it a photograph or a drawing?
Thank you Pamela. The third image is a photo taken at sunrise. Perhaps it’s the odd light that makes it look like other than a photograph.
Lion’s Mane Jellyfish: Also famous for being featured in the Sherlock Holmes story “The Adventure of the Lion’s Mane” by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle.
I just had to add that to the discussion. 🙂
Your drawing makes the jellyfish look quite alluring. I wonder if I’ll ever get to see one? But oh dear, the one washed up on the beach looks like exactly the sort of thing the Cowboy likes to roll in. That, I gather, would not do at all. Not one little bit.
Interesting pictures and information, I enjoyed reading your post 🙂
When I was a kid growing up in Hawaii, we saw many jellyfish both on shore and in the water – I never tired of seeing them though being stung by one was never fun. My mom used to carry a bottle of meat tenderizer in the beach bag to take the sting away. Thanx for bringing back some good memories!
Holy cats ! The biggest jelly fish was 7 feet across ! Wouldn’t want to swim into THOSE tentacles.
Beautiful drawing of a delicate sea creature, Amy. I always learn something coming here.