A Box Jellyfish is a jellyfish-like creature in the class Cubozoa. Researchers do not consider these invertebrates “true” jellyfish, and place them in their own class.
Currently, they recognize about 51 different species in this group. Many of the various species pose a danger to humans with their stings. Read on to learn about the Box Jellyfish.
Description of the Box Jellyfish
All of the various species in this group have a similar appearance. Their bell has a cube-like shape, which they get their name from. Their tentacles attach at each corner of the bell.
The different species have different sizes. However, at their largest they measure about a foot across and their tentacles grow nearly 10 feet long.
Interesting Facts About the Box Jellyfish
These creatures hold notoriety for their painful and potentially deadly stings. Learn more about what makes these invertebrates so interesting, below.
- Deadly Stings – Several different species produce deadly venom in their stings. When left untreated, severe stings have even resulted in death. In Australia, researchers have recorded at least 64 deaths by the sea wasp in the past hundred-odd years.
- Irukandji Syndrome – Stings from some species, primarily Irukandji species, result in severe reactions. Some symptoms include anxiety, headache, vomiting, backache, chest pain, high blood pressure, and more.
- Trigger Warning – The stinging cells of these creatures do not fire in response to touching an object. Instead, they react to the chemicals on the skin. This helps the creatures avoid wasting resources on inanimate objects.
- Pantyhose Prevention – Some people implement the use of pantyhose while diving or swimming to avoid the stings of this creature. The pantyhose work because they prevent the stinging cells from firing because they do not have the aforementioned chemicals found on your skin.
Habitat of the Box Jellyfish
The different species in this group live in different types of habitats. Each has its own unique preferences. All of the various species live in marine, or saltwater, habitats. Most species prefer coastal regions close to shore. Some of the different types of habitats that they occupy include reefs, coasts, mangroves, and more.
Distribution of the Box Jellyfish
While various species have different ranges, the most dangerous species live primarily in the Indo-Pacific near Australia, Indonesia, and the surrounding islands. However, other species also live in the Atlantic Ocean as well. You can find these creatures in virtually any tropical or subtropical sea.
Diet of the Box Jellyfish
Unlike true jellyfish, which passively float until prey becomes entangled in their tentacles, these creatures actively hunt for food. They have carnivorous feeding habits, and hunt for small fish and invertebrates. When their prey comes in contact with their tentacles, harpoon-like stinging cells inject venom to subdue their prey.
Box Jellyfish and Human Interaction
Several different species pose a danger to humans. This danger is greater in children because of their smaller body size. The stings pose the greatest danger in less-developed regions with more restricted access to medical intervention. For example, fewer deaths occur yearly in Australia than in the Malaysian Archipelago.
Domestication
Humans have not domesticated these creatures in any way.
Does the Box Jellyfish Make a Good Pet
People refer to one species in this group as the “sea wasp” — why would you ever want to keep that as a pet?
Box Jellyfish Care
The care of these creatures is similar to that of the true jellies. Aquarists keep them in tanks with rounded edges, and use a gentle current of water to prevent them from colliding with the glass. They feed them small fish, shrimp, and other invertebrates. Each species has different specific needs for temperature and pH levels.
Behavior of the Box Jellyfish
Unlike the more passive true jellyfish, these creatures display active predatory behavior. They use their bell to swim rapidly in the direction of their prey using their relatively complex nervous and visual processing system. They also use these systems to avoid obstacles.
Reproduction of the Box Jellyfish
The reproductive habits and rates of these invertebrates vary based on the species. In many species, scientists have not researched their reproduction fully.
Their lifecycle is similar to that of the true jellies. The adults release their eggs and sperm to fertilize externally. The eggs hatch into a larva, which attaches itself to a substrate. The larva grows into a polyp, and the polyp buds off miniature versions of the adults.
FAQs
Box jellyfish are carnivores. They eat small fish, crustaceans, worms, jellyfish, and other small prey. Box jellyfish actively hunt prey. They swim at speeds up to 4.6 miles per hour and use stinging cells on their tentacles and bell to inject venom into their targets.
What is the habitat of the box jellyfish? ›
Box jellies, also called sea wasps and marine stingers, live primarily in coastal waters off Northern Australia and throughout the Indo-Pacific. They are pale blue and transparent in color and get their name from the cube-like shape of their bell.
What are some interesting facts about the box jellyfish? ›
Box jellyfish are highly advanced
Unlike most species of jellyfish, box jellies have eyes and can see, rather than only sense light. They have 24 eyes spread across all four sides of their bell, meaning that they have 360-degree vision. Not only that, but box jellyfish can also move up to six metres per minute!
What is a box jellyfish diet? ›
Box jellyfish feed on crustaceans, plankton, and fish, and they often stun or kill their victims with venom before consuming them. The bodies of all box jellyfish in their adult, or free-swimming medusa, form resemble a box-shaped bell, with clusters of tentacles trailing from each corner of the bell.
What are some facts about jellyfish and their habitat? ›
Jellyfish have drifted along on ocean currents for millions of years, even before dinosaurs lived on the Earth. The jellylike creatures pulse along on ocean currents and are abundant in cold and warm ocean water, in deep water, and along coastlines.
Where do box jellyfish eat? ›
Box Jellyfish feed on small fish and crustaceans. It uses its tentacles to kill its prey. Fertilised eggs grow into planula and settle on rocks in creeks and metamorphose into tiny polyps. Small jellyfish make their way to the ocean and feed and grow up to 2mm a day depending on temperature and food availability.
How deep is the box jellyfish habitat? ›
Box jellyfish cause human fatalities and have a life cycle and habit associated with shallow waters (<5 m) in mangrove creeks, coastal beaches, embayments.
What are 10 interesting facts about jellyfish? ›
10 Amazing Jellyfish Facts for Kids
- Some jellyfish can glow in the dark. ...
- Jellyfish are the oldest multi-organ animal. ...
- Jellyfish don't have brains. ...
- Jellyfish are found all over the world. ...
- Some jellyfish are immortal. ...
- Not all jellyfish have tentacles. ...
- There's a giant jellyfish called the hair jelly.
In total, the box jellyfish have 6 eyes on each of their 4 rhopalia, creating a total of 24 eyes. The rhopalia also feature a heavy crystal-like structure called a statolith, which, due to the flexibility of the rhopalia, keep the eyes oriented vertically regardless of the orientation of the bell.
How many box jellyfish died? ›
While no official tallies exist, anecdotal evidence suggests dozens of people and perhaps more than 100 or more die each year from the many species of box jellyfish that exist in all oceans.
Natural Predators
Among the predators of the jellyfish, the following have been identified: ocean sunfish, grey triggerfish, turtles (especially the leatherback sea turtle), some seabirds (such as the fulmars), the whale shark, some crabs (such as the arrow and hermit crabs), some whales (such as the humpbacks).
Do box jellyfish sleep? ›
They don't have brains, or even anything more than a rudimentary nervous system, but jellyfish apparently do have bedtimes. New research finds that jellyfish enter a sleep-like state.
What are box jellyfish facts for kids? ›
Box Jellyfish are one of the most dangerous jellyfish because the sting from their tentacles can kill animals (including humans). Their bodies have two parts. The medusa is the main part of their body which is shaped like a rectangular box. The tentacles hang down from the medusa and are the part that can sting you.
What is a jellyfish diet and habitat? ›
Jellyfish Habitats
These natural forces can push them into deep waters, as well as close to the shorelines. Their diets are as diverse as the areas they inhabit. Jellyfish prey upon small fish, plankton, crustaceans, and sometimes other jellyfish. Jellyfish also have the amazing ability to adapt to their environment.
Did NASA send jellyfish to space? ›
As part of NASA's first Spacelab Life Sciences (SLS-1) Mission in 1991, over 2,000 moon jellyfish (funny enough) polyps were launched into space on the space shuttle Columbia. Astronauts induced these polyps to strobilate and produce baby jellyfish then monitored their development to adulthood.
What do jellyfish eat facts? ›
Jellyfish eat many different types of things, such as small plants (phytoplankton), copepods (crustacean zooplankton), fish eggs and other small fish called larvae; they also eat the planktonic eggs and young stages (also called larvae) of many different kinds of marine animals. Some jellyfish even eat other jellyfish!
How is a jellyfish habitat? ›
Jellyfish are pelagic animals they live in the open seas from tropical to Artic waters and, although they can propel themselves with rhythmic motions of their umbrella, they are basically at the mercy of the currents of the sea. Because their body is 95% water, they are perfectly camouflaged.
Has anyone survived a box jellyfish sting? ›
A five-year-old boy stung by a deadly box jellyfish at a beach in Australia is lucky to be alive and prompt treatment with vinegar helped save him.
Where are jellyfish most commonly found? ›
Jellyfish inhabit all the world's oceans and can withstand a wide range of temperatures and salinities. Most live in shallow coastal waters, but a few inhabit depths of 12,000 feet.
Do box jellyfish live in shallow or deep water? ›
They generally occur in quiet, shallow waters of protected bays and estuaries, and over sandy-bottomed shorelines, though some species have been reported in the open ocean. Box jellies apparently descend to deeper water during daylight hours, but during summer months, adults are often reported at the surface.
