Stunning New Footage Shows Mysterious Giant Deep-Sea ‘Phantom’ Jelly As Never Seen Before
The giant phantom jelly has a reddish coloration, similarly to many other deep-sea animals. Since red light cannot penetrate to the ocean’s depths, animals that are red appear black and camouflaged in the darkness. Scientists are unsure what animals might prey on the giant phantom jelly, but its crimson color and large size likely help deter most predators. Image: © 2018 MBARI
The giant phantom jelly was first collected in 1899. Since then, scientists have only encountered this animal about 100 times. It appears to have a worldwide distribution and has been recorded in all ocean basins except for the Arctic. The challenges of accessing its deep-water habitat contribute to the relative scarcity of sightings for such a large and broadly distributed species. MBARI’s ROV Tiburon observed this individual in the outer reaches of the Monterey Canyon at a depth of approximately 1,100 meters (3,600 feet). Image: © 2007 MBARI
MBARI’s ROV Tiburon recorded this giant phantom jelly while drifting in the currents just above the deep seafloor during an expedition to the Channel Islands off the coast of Southern California. Image: © 2005 MBARI
The giant phantom jelly does not have tentacles. Instead, it uses four blanket-like oral (or mouth) arms lined with stinging cells to stun prey. We don’t know what the giant phantom jelly eats, but scientists suspect it dines on plankton and perhaps small fish. Image: © 2007 MBARI
Most observations of the giant phantom jelly have occurred in deep water. MBARI has recorded this species at depths of 750 to 2,200 meters (2,500 to 7,200 feet) in Monterey Bay, the Juan de Fuca Ridge, and the Gulf of California. In the cold waters around Antarctica, the species has been seen in shallow waters. Image: © 2021 MBARI
The giant phantom jelly was first collected in 1899. Since then, scientists have only encountered this animal about 100 times. It appears to have a worldwide distribution and has been recorded in all ocean basins except for the Arctic. The challenges of accessing its deep-water habitat contribute to the relative scarcity of sightings for such a large and broadly distributed species. MBARI’s ROV Tiburon observed this individual in the outer reaches of the Monterey Canyon at a depth of approximately 1,100 meters (3,600 feet). Image: © 2007 MBARI
MBARI’s ROV Tiburon recorded this giant phantom jelly while drifting in the currents just above the deep seafloor during an expedition to the Channel Islands off the coast of Southern California. Image: © 2005 MBARI
The giant phantom jelly does not have tentacles. Instead, it uses four blanket-like oral (or mouth) arms lined with stinging cells to stun prey. We don’t know what the giant phantom jelly eats, but scientists suspect it dines on plankton and perhaps small fish. Image: © 2007 MBARI
Most observations of the giant phantom jelly have occurred in deep water. MBARI has recorded this species at depths of 750 to 2,200 meters (2,500 to 7,200 feet) in Monterey Bay, the Juan de Fuca Ridge, and the Gulf of California. In the cold waters around Antarctica, the species has been seen in shallow waters. Image: © 2021 MBARI
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21 November 2022
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