Deepstaria reticulum
| Deepstaria reticulum | |
|---|---|
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Cnidaria |
| Class: | Scyphozoa |
| Order: | Semaeostomeae |
| Family: | Ulmaridae |
| Genus: | Deepstaria |
| Species: | D. reticulum |
| Binomial name | |
| Deepstaria reticulum Larson, Madin, and Harbison, 1988 | |
Deepstaria reticulum, is a jellyfish of the family Ulmaridae. It was described by Larson, Madin, and Harbison in 1988. This was the second described Deepstaria species, the first having been Deepstaria enigmatica (Russell, 1967).
Description
Deepstaria reticulum has a wide, fan-like bell that is often a deep purple color, under the bell there is a small cluster of tentacles, loaded with stinging, venomous barbs like any other jellyfish. At the largest, they get about 0.7 meters long. Unlike their counterparts, deepstaria enigmatica, their bell is spread wide, like a thin, translucent bed sheet. (Deepstaria enigmatica has a wide bell, too, but resembles a lava lamp or a lady in colonial time's dress.)
Further reading
- Larson, R.; Madin L., Harbison, G. (1988). "In situ observations of deep water medusae of the genus Deepstaria, with a description of D. reticulum sp. nov.". Journal of the Marine Biological Association of the UK 68: 689–699.