Moon Jellyfish Take the Sting Out Of Your Undersea Explorations
Colorless, brainless, heartless, rudderless – jellyfish embody quite a lot of qualities that are “less” than ideal. It’s generally smart to steer clear of these bad boys during your undersea adventures, unless, of course, you happen upon a Moon Jellyfish.
What’s a Moon Jellyfish?
Their scientific name is Aurelia Aurita, though they’re also known as Common or Saucer Jellyfish.
(Personally I like Moon Jelly the best.)
Unlike their more infamous stinging cousins, Moon Jellyfish are harmless, something I discovered while snorkeling with my family in Bimini.
It was early in the morning of our second full day moored off the coast of Gun Cay. My sons and I were getting in a little snorkel around the boat that was our home for the weekend when this guy, and a few of his friends, wandered into our way.
Diving Into Jelly-Infested Waters
Us guys were startled for sure, but not more so than my wife. She just happened to splash onto the scene soon after we spotted the Moonies…
Yeah, she hopped back onto the boat even faster than she jumped in.
Gentle Jellyfish
Later, our captain, Chris, explained that we had nothing to fear. He even went so far as to delicately pick up a Moon Jellyfish to prove it.
The bottom side, he explained, is very delicate. That’s where you’ll find the four circular-shaped gonads that are the Moon Jelly’s trademark. Once you see those, you know you’re in the clear.
For the Moon Jelly, though, it’s another story. As Chris said…
This is one jellyfish that has more to fear from us than we do from him.
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