Project Description
Moon Jelly
Aurelia aurita
Range/Geographical Distribution: From Greenland to the West Indies.
Habitat: Inshore and offshore waters along the coast.
Description: Round, translucent, white jelly with four distinct horseshoe-shaped gonads in the middle of the bell.
Size: Can reach ten inches in diameter.
Food: Plankton.
Breeding: Reaches sexual maturity during the spring and summer. The eggs develop in gonads located underneath the stomach.
Predators: Sea turtles, fish, birds, and other jellies.
Conservation Status: No legal status.
Interesting Facts: Moon jellies swim by pulsations of their bell in order to stay near the surface and keep their tentacles spread out to catch food.
On the Coast: Moon jellies are found along the Georgia coast in the summer and fall. They can be seen in the water and washed up onto the beach in a gelatinous blob.