''Chrysaora melanaster'', commonly known as the northern sea nettle or brown jellyfish, is a species of

jellyfish Jellyfish, also known as sea jellies or simply jellies, are the #Life cycle, medusa-phase of certain gelatinous members of the subphylum Medusozoa, which is a major part of the phylum Cnidaria. Jellyfish are mainly free-swimming marine animal ...

native to the northern Pacific Ocean and adjacent parts of the Arctic Ocean. It is sometimes referred to as a Pacific sea nettle, but this name is also used for '' C. fuscescens''; the name Japanese sea nettle was also used for this species, but that name now exclusively refers to '' C. pacifica''. Although jellyfish kept in

public aquarium A public aquarium () or public water zoo is the aquatic counterpart of a zoo, which houses living aquatic animal and aquatic plant, plant specimens for public viewing. Most public aquariums feature tanks larger than those kept by home aquarists, ...

s sometimes are referred to as ''C. melanaster'', this is the result of the historical naming confusion and these actually are ''C. pacifica''.

Description

The medusa of the northern sea nettle can reach in diameter with tentacles growing up to . CNET news
Chrysaora melanaster
from "Census of Marine Life reveals hidden life in oceans" article (October 5, 2010). The number of tentacles is up to 24 (three per octant). It dwells at depths of up to 100 meters, where it feeds on

copepod Copepods (; meaning 'oar-feet') are a group of small crustaceans found in nearly every freshwater and saltwater habitat (ecology), habitat. Some species are planktonic (living in the water column), some are benthos, benthic (living on the sedimen ...

larvacean Larvaceans, copelates or appendicularians, class Appendicularia, are solitary, free-swimming tunicates found throughout the world's oceans. While larvaceans are filter feeders like most other tunicates, they keep their tadpole-like shape as adu ...

s, small fish, large

zooplankton Zooplankton are the heterotrophic component of the planktonic community (the " zoo-" prefix comes from ), having to consume other organisms to thrive. Plankton are aquatic organisms that are unable to swim effectively against currents. Consequent ...

, and other jellies. The sting is mild, although can cause serious skin irritation and burning. The lifespan is unknown.

Habitat

The northern sea nettle is found in open water of temperate northern Pacific Ocean, Arctic Ocean and especially the

Bering Sea The Bering Sea ( , ; rus, Бе́рингово мо́ре, r=Béringovo móre, p=ˈbʲerʲɪnɡəvə ˈmorʲe) is a marginal sea of the Northern Pacific Ocean. It forms, along with the Bering Strait, the divide between the two largest landmasse ...

Ecology

Pollock Pollock or pollack (pronounced ) is the common name used for either of the two species of North Atlantic ocean, marine fish in the genus ''Pollachius''. ''Pollachius pollachius'' is referred to as "pollock" in North America, Ireland and the Unit ...

can be both the food of the northern sea nettle and also the competitor for potentially limited sources of prey.

Status

The total biomass of the northern sea nettle has increased in recent years as climate change has caused a more stable and productive surface layer. This increased stability of the water column would also have contributed to the warmer surface temperatures found in late summer in the 1990s, leading to increased growth and survival of the northern sea nettle.

References

melanaster Articles containing video clips Animals described in 1835 Taxa named by Johann Friedrich von Brandt {{scyphozoa-stub