October presented new opportunities for the study of the Sea Nettles. My first visit to the aquarium was really just to get an idea of where I'll be working. I learned about the system keeping the polyps, and how we're going to collect the ephyrae (system pictured here). In November, we will begin manipulating the systems in such a way as to cause strobliation. The problem is, we don't know exactly what causes strobilation in the Pacific Sea Nettles, so we will try changing temperature, salinity, currents, and lighting to get them to strobilate. Ephyrae will then strobilate off of the parent polyp, travel into the overflow tubes, and be collected in the small containers on the left of the picture.
Relating to medusa stages of the Pacific Sea Nettles, I was able to go behind SS6, the main C. fuscescens exhibit, and learn how to sex the medusas. Nao, a biologist who works with the jellies, showed me where to locate the gametes, along with some basic sea jelly nomenclature relating to their body parts. I was able to take video of Nao giving a lesson about the medusas in SS6, relating primarily to their reproduction.
Relating to medusa stages of the Pacific Sea Nettles, I was able to go behind SS6, the main C. fuscescens exhibit, and learn how to sex the medusas. Nao, a biologist who works with the jellies, showed me where to locate the gametes, along with some basic sea jelly nomenclature relating to their body parts. I was able to take video of Nao giving a lesson about the medusas in SS6, relating primarily to their reproduction.