Aquarium

Jelly Home
Body by Jell-o
A Jelly's Life
Kinfolk
Teachers!

What is there that confers the noblest delight? What is that which swells a (person's) breast with pride above that which any other experience can bring to (them)? Discovery!
--Mark Twain

In Enchanted Seas, our current changing exhibit, we have brought you precious specimens from all over the world. Scroll to your right to discover some of the jellies you might encounter in our exhibit and learn more about how we care for jellies behind-the-scenes. Can't get to the Aquarium? Check out our moon jellies via the JellyCam.


*Moon jelly* The moon jelly has one of the weakest stings of any jellyfish. These jellies trap much of their food on the sticky mucus covering their bell, then transport it to their tentacles.	*Egg yolk jelly* This jelly is a mess. Up to 20 feet of tangled, sticky tentacles hang from a bell that looks like a badly fried egg. The egg yolk drifts almost motionless, awaiting small fish, plankton and even other jellies.	*Upside-down jelly* Also known by its genus name, Cassiopea, this jelly is a farmer. Algae living in its tissues provide nutrients. The jellies rest or swim upside-down to expose the algae to the sun.	*Lion's mane jelly* Not only the largest of all jellies but with tentacles that can reach up to 200 feet the lion's mane jelly is the longest animal on earth! Not all reach this size but even the small ones pack a powerful sting.	*Crystal jelly* These seemingly harmless creatures can open their mouths wide enough to swallow jellies half their size. They light up when disturbed. People harvest them for the chemicals that make them glow.	*Sea gooseberry* When is a jelly not a jelly at all? When it is a comb jelly. Comb jellies are ctenophores, with rows of iridescent combs instead of stinging tentacles. Gooseberries also have two long tentacles for capturing prey.


Jelly Farmin' The adults on display at the Aquarium (and on the JellyCam) are the Oregon moon jelly, Aurelia labiata. In back, we grow another species of moon jelly - the Japanese moon jelly, Aurelia aurita, so that we can display the young ephyrae (above right). Young aurita polyps populate plates hanging in a behind-the-scenes tank (above left). Eventually they will begin to strobulate (above center), and the individual ephyrae will peel off and rejoin the plankton. Young ephyrae will grow into adult moon jelly medusas. Learn more about the life cycle of the moon jelly here!