More deadly than any shark, the box jellyfish is only a fraction of the man-eater's size and is barely able to propel itself. This creature, of which there are more than a dozen species, simply drifts through the water, its poison-filled tentacles creating an almost invisible, deadly trail where victims become entangled and quickly die.
Ring-a-Dingy: The jellyfish's body, also called the "bell," is made up of an outer and inner layer of cells that hold the internal organs. Between it all is a thick mass of "jelly," which is actually a lump of tissue (called mesoglea).
Tentacle Trail: More than 30 tentacles are attached to the bell and dangle behind the jellyfish. Loaded with poison stingers, the tentacles trap prey, then pull victims slowly toward the creature's mouth.
Long and Lethal[]
It's easy to tell that the latest meal for this box jellyfish was a shrimp.
The box jellyfish may look soft, but its arsenal of weapons is worthy of the toughest army. The tentacles, each stretching up to about 10 ft., are packed with up to 5 billion stinging cells. The jellyfish tries to avoid contact with anything other than prey, but when something bumps into it, the tentacles instinctively fire off their stingers. If a person becomes tangled, he or she can be killed in a matter of minutes.
A Real No Brainer: The box jellyfish doesn't have a brain-reactions to its surroundings are automatically performed by a network of nerves running through its body.
See What? Recent discoveries show that the box jellyfish has an eye on each side of its body. Without a brain, however, it's unknown what the creature does with its sight.
Poison Harpoon[]
- Because box jellyfish bodies are nearly transparent, swimmers often don't see the dangerous creature as it drifts nearby with its many tentacles.
- Swimmers can easily become entangled in the tentacles, which can dangle as far as 10 ft. behind the jellyfish.
- On contact, the jellyfish's tentacles fire several stingers, like tiny harpoons. They break the skin and cause terrible pain.
Trading Card[]
Trivia[]
- The box jellyfish is mentioned on several cards:
- The Fire Coral knowledge card discusses the coral's relation to jellyfish, showing the box jellyfish's illustration as an example.
- It is mentioned on the Helmet Jellyfish card as a cousin.
- In both of these instances, the box jellyfish's front illustration is used on the other knowledge cards.
- The jellyfish's knowledge card erroneously calls it poisonous instead of venomous.
- The box jellyfish image on the back-right of the knowledge card is shared with the Wildlife Explorer card.
- The box jellyfish is featured on several Monster Mania cards:
- The box jellyfish's trading card is featured on Monster Mania 21.
- Later, the box jellyfish is featured in Animal All-Stars on Monster Mania 106.
- The Species section on the Creature Features lists only one species of Box Jellyfish: Chironex fleckeri (the Australian box jellyfish, a.k.a. sea wasp). However, the main paragraph on the front of the card mentions there being more than a dozen Species.
- Furthermore, box jellyfish are a class and not a species.