Carybdea murrayana

Carybdea murrayana
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Cnidaria
Class:	Cubozoa
Order:	Carybdeida
Family:	Carybdeidae
Genus:	Carybdea
Species:	C. murrayana
Binomial name
Carybdea murrayana Haeckel, 1880[1]
Synonyms
Carybdea branchi Gershwin & Gibbons, 2009

Carybdea murrayana, the South African box jellyfish, is a venomous species of cnidarian, in the small family Carybdeidae within the class Cubozoa.

Description

This small box jellyfish grows up to 7 cm (2.8 in) across and may have tentacles of up to 2 m (6.6 ft) in total length. It has a transparent box-shaped bell with a very long tentacle trailing from each corner.[2]

The animal is described as being robust and having a well sculpted in particular, single rooted with multiple stems,^[clarification needed] velarial canals 2 per octant, pedalia knee bend upwards turned volcano shaped. Also known to have a brownish pigmentation of the phacellae and pedalia. [3]

Distribution

This jellyfish is found from the north of Namibia around the South African coast to Port Elizabeth from the surface to a depth of at least 35 m (115 ft) underwater.

Ecology

This jellyfish is often seen in swarms. The tentacles have a painful sting, although the sting is not known to be fatal. It is eaten by the sunfishes, Mola mola[4] and Mola ramsayi, as well as the slender sunfish, Ranzania laevis.

References

1. Collins, Allen G. (2014). "Carybdea branchi Gershwin & Gibbons, 2009". WoRMS. World Register of Marine Species. Retrieved 2015-01-03.
2. Branch, G.M., Branch, M.L, Griffiths, C.L. and Beckley, L.E. 2010. Two Oceans: a guide to the marine life of southern Africa. ISBN 978-1-77007-772-0.
3. Acevedo et al. 2019. Revision of the genus Carybdea (Cnidaria: Cubozoa: Carybdeidae): clarifying the identity of its type species Carybdea marsupialis. Zootaxa.
4. Jones, Georgina. A field guide to the marine animals of the Cape Peninsula. SURG, Cape Town, 2008. ISBN 978-0-620-41639-9