Details
Cyanea capillata
The lion's mane jellyfish is a large cold-water jellyfish whose trailing tentacles resemble a mane. It is a drifting predator of plankton and small fishes.
Map: Ecoregions 2017 © RESOLVE (CC BY 4.0) · Natural Earth (PD)
It inhabits cold coastal and open waters of the North Atlantic, North Pacific and Arctic region. Blooms may be conspicuous near shore from summer into autumn.
The bell is commonly tens of centimetres wide and can approach 2 m in very large individuals. The reddish to orange bell carries many long, fine tentacles.
It drifts with currents and moves slowly by pulsing the bell. Individuals may appear alone or gather where food is concentrated.
Zooplankton, small fishes and other jellyfish are caught with stinging cells. The long tentacles sweep a wide area and pass prey toward the bell.
Adults release eggs and sperm, and larvae settle as polyps on the seafloor. Polyps then release young jellyfish that grow in the plankton.
Stings can be painful, though most are not severe. The species is one of the iconic giant jellyfish of northern seas.
