Four-armed jellyfish found
Bumpy sea creature is new species.
9 February 2004
HELEN R. PILCHER

Researchers have discovered a new species of jellyfish so different from its
fellow creatures that it merits a new subfamily. The diaphanous beast, which
dwells in deep waters off California, has a bell-shaped body and four fleshy
arms.

The creature was first nicknamed 'Bumpy' by the researchers who found it,
because it is covered in tiny bumps. But it now has an official moniker:
Stellamedusa ventana.

'Stella' refers both to its translucent blue-white colour and its trailing
arms, which make it look like a shooting star, while 'medusa' is a commonly
used name for jellyfish. It is named 'ventana' after the robotic submarine
that first caught Bumpy on video, explains its discoverer, Kevin Raskoff of
the Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute in California.

The creature is unusual because it has arms instead of tentacles, says
Raskoff. The arms protrude from inside the bell of the jellyfish and act
like a pair of extended lips, helping guide food to the mouth. The bumps are
clusters of stinging cells that help it capture prey.

The jellyfish's anatomy and behaviour are different enough to make it
qualify as a new subfamily. "This is a pretty big deal," says Raskoff. For
comparison, lions and domestic cats belong to the same family, but different
subfamilies. This is a jellyfish equivalent, he says. The subfamily has been
named Stellamedusinae, and brings the total number of jellyfish subfamilies
to eight.

Read the rest at Nature
http://www.nature.com/nsu/040202/040202-17.html

Posted by
Robert Karl Stonjek.
---
þ RIMEGate(tm)/RGXPost V1.14 at BBSWORLD * Info{at}bbsworld.com

---
 * RIMEGate(tm)V10.2áÿ* RelayNet(tm) NNTP Gateway * MoonDog BBS
 * RgateImp.MoonDog.BBS at 2/10/04 11:50:08 AM