Their venom is considered to be among the most deadly in the world, containing toxins that attack the heart, nervous system, and skin cells. It is so overpoweringly painful, human victims have been known to go into shock and drown or die of heart failure before even reaching shore.
Survivors can experience considerable pain for weeks and often have significant scarring where the tentacles made contact.
Box jellies, also called sea wasps and marine stingers, live primarily in coastal waters off Northern Australia and throughout the Indo-Pacific. They are pale blue and transparent in color and get their name from the cube-like shape of their bell. Up to 15 tentacles grow from each corner of the bell and can reach 10 feet in length. Each tentacle has about 5, stinging cells, which are triggered not by touch but by the presence of a chemical on the outer layer of its prey.
Box jellies are highly advanced among jellyfish. They have developed the ability to move rather than just drift, jetting at up to four knots through the water. They also have eyes grouped in clusters of six on the four sides of their bell.
All rights reserved. Common Name: Box Jellyfish. They are also one of the few species of Jellyfish that have eyes. They are in clusters on all sides of the body and have 24 of them. They are able to distinguish between light and dark. They are also able to identify various type of light too. Their eyes make it possible for them to find prey and to escape predators. It is very difficult to understand the evolution process for Jellyfish as a whole, including the presence of the Box Jellyfish.
More than million years ago the Jellyfish was on Earth so they are able to adapt to changes all around them.
The Box Jellyfish has many differences that distinguish them from other species. Most experts believe that the Box Jellyfish had to deal with various predators that were large so that is why their toxins are stronger than other species. It is believed their eye development and their advanced censoring system though are both part of the evolution process for this species of Jellyfish. The instant pain from the sting is going to be too much for you to ignore. Getting someone out of the water quickly that has been stung by one is very important.
People can suffer from shock and fear and not be able to get out on their own. They are able to move around on their own and not use great amounts of energy to do so. They can use the currents of the water or the wind to move then in the direction they want to go.
All jellyfish sleep at night and hunt during the day. They sleep at the bottom of the ocean floor. Read more: How Box Jellyfish Reproduce? Read more: Box Jellyfish Habitat. Read more: Box Jellyfish Season Australia. Read more: What Eats Box Jellyfish? There is one rhopalia for each of the four sides of the box jellyfish. These rhopalia are sensitive to light, odour, and orientation.
They also contain pacemakers that regulate the expansion and contraction of the bell, which controls the jellyfish's movement. In each rhopalia, two eyes are pigmented light-sensitive pits, two others are light-sensitive slit eyes, and the other two are the most sophisticated.
These more complex eyes, which are capable of seeing images, are known as the upper-lens and lower-lens eyes. Regardless of the jellyfish's position, the lens of the upper eyes is always pointed upwards. This suggests that the jellyfish is capable of orientation and navigation.
The lower eyes are focused downward and helps the animal detect obstacles and prey below it. These eyes, like those of humans, include a lens, retina, iris, and cornea. The box jellyfish's eyes allow it to navigate and hunt out its prey.
It is thought to be one of the few animals to have a degree view of its environment. The box jellyfish also has gravity sensors called statocysts , close to each rhopalium. These detect the earth's gravitational pull, which also helps the animal balance and orient itself. This species also can detect vibrations allowing it to detect prey and water turbulence.
The box jellyfish has no brain. Instead, it has a network of neurons, referred to as the 'nerve net', dispersed throughout its mesoglea. This collection of nerve cells overlap and criss-cross each other creating a microscopic net-like pattern. These neurons interact wherever they cross each other. The nerve net is connected to sensory cells on its endoderm and ectoderm and also to its contractile cells, which function similarly to muscles in other animals.
Along with the nerve net, the box jellyfish also has a more complex nerve ring that connects its four eye clusters and tentacle stubs and controls the animal's orientation and movement. Signals travel from one cell to another through this rudimentary network. In this way, information is transmitted and shared without a centralised brain. Since it does not have a central nervous system, it is not sure how the box jellyfish processes visual, spatial, and vibration information it receives from its eyes and other sensors to regulate the pacemakers that control its movement.
The box jellyfish has no gills or lungs. It absorbs oxygen and releases carbon dioxide into the water by diffusion through its ectoderm and endoderm. Body waste, too, is dispensed in this manner. Nutrients are transported throughout its body by diffusion from cell to cell.
Given its simple anatomy, it does not need specialised organs. Wondered why we keep using the term 'venomous' rather than 'poisonous'? Here is the reason. A venomous animal injects or otherwise delivers its toxin into another animal. While a poisonous animal's entire body or parts of it may contain a toxic substance that is harmful if touched or eaten. Because the box jellyfish injects its toxins it is venomous. The box jellyfish species Chironex fleckeri is considered to be the most venomous animal in the world.
It is claimed that each box jellyfish has enough venom to kill 60 people. In Australia, the box jellyfish has caused at least 79 deaths since The most recent was a 17 year boy who died in However, this is much less than are killed by sharks.
The box jellyfish is not aggressive towards humans. Unfortunately, it too enjoys the warm shallow waters with slightly sloping coastlines also enjoyed by people.
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