JellyFAQs2

FAQs on the Ctenophorans, Scyphozoans and Hydrozoans called Jellyfishes 2

Related Articles: Jellyfishes, Scyphozoans, Hydrozoan Jellies, Hydrozoans, Cnidarians,

Moon Jellies 9/30/16
Hi Crew,
<Cathy>
Very grateful for the site.
<Glad to hear you use us as a resource... Don't forget to spread the word
:)>
I have a cubic setup for jellyfish it has been set up for 10 months.
<Not ideal for jellies, but that's okay. Most jellies do best in a round tank, like a circle on its side.>
The problem I am having is a pod explosion.
<Copepod, I assume?>
They are everywhere, I know wish it was my display tank but no has to be jelly tank.
<Aquarist problems :) I've had this happen with Coraline algae a lot. It grows in my refugium, but not my display tank.> Anyway, the problem seems to be that as jellyfish don't actively seek out their food they just sort if bump into it so they are full with pods. I don't think they can digest the pods due to the shells ( I think ).
<They should be able to digest them, but I would add another plankton of some sort to their diet as well>
Therefore they are shrinking, starving. I have done water change after water change can't put a dent in the pod population the balancing act due to the sensitivity of the jelly fish to minor changes in water chemistry is making it stressful as well. I have used a filter sock to just filter the existing water through as well but that didn't help either. Short of pulling down the whole setup and taking out all the biological media and starting again do you have any suggestions? If I strip out the system and re-set up how do I cycle without biological media? ( currently have a piece of live rock and some small bio tubes in chamber). Please help started with 1 large moon jelly fish, 2 medium, and 1 small, down to large turned medium, 1 medium, minute 2 disappeared.
Thank you
Cathy Napoli
<So sorry about your losses, Cathy. Could you inform me of the tank size, water quality, salinity, etc., as well as some pictures of the jellies? My advice for now would be to get a turkey baster and suck out as many pods as you can. Set them in another tank or holding container. I would begin to spot-feed the jellies with the baster instead of hoping they will hunt on their own. This will ensure they get food to their little bodies. Please do send pictures and the aforementioned information. In the meantime, read here: http://www.wetwebmedia.com/jellysysfaqs.htm and http://www.wetwebmedia.com/jellyfdgfaqs.htm Hope to hear back soon. Cheers, Gabe.>

Re: Moon Jellies 10/3/16
Hi Gabe
<Cathy>
Thanks for the response. The tank is a cubic brand circular tank on side specifically designed for jellies.
<My bad. I assume cubic shaped, not cubic brand>
I spot feed Rotifers and the food preparation sold specifically for jellies.
<Great>
Prior to the pod explosion you could see the food In their bellies. Red brown color now white.
<Probably stressed out from the pods>
Ammonia 0
Nitrates 0
Nitrite 0
Ph. 8:2
Phosphates .02
Salinity 1.026
Temp 25c
<Hmm. At this point, I would continue to spot feed and hop for the best.
Water seems to be in perfect conditions. Read more on WetWeb re. Cheers, Gabe>
Re: Moon Jellies 10/3/16
Hi Gabe
<Cathy>
Accidentally pressed send hopefully you can see the pods as well as food remains and tank type.
<Holy pods!!! You weren't kidding when you said there was an outbreak!>
Pods too numerous to symphony
<Siphon?>
with turkey baster although I do try to do it. Due to water changes/ symphonies
<Siphons again?>
being frequent have been putting in my refugium.
<Not sure how they got so out of control here. The only way to get rid of all of them would be to start from scratch. I hate to say it, but that's the only way to get all of them out. I know it can be a pain, especially with jellies, but it may need to be done. Good luck. Cheers, Gabe>

Variation in hydroids? 4/15/06 Good day WWM crew! You folks the bomb! <Boom, boom da boom...> Sew, I noticed on ReefCentral, on their current (4-14-06) homepage, for their slideshow presentation, they have some images of hydroids mixed in there. <Are common in shallow reef environments...> I've had what I thought to be a rather small colony though spreading all over rockwork, of polyps. They look like a mini version of snake polyps or a variation of a small yellow polyp. I can provide images if needed. <Please do> My question, mainly.....these guys in my tank, that look almost identical to the slideshow on ReefCentral, retract when touched or if anything moves or swims by them.....so, are there any species of hydroids that retract? <Likely so> If so, I would have never known such....and am craving a definitive answer. Thanks very much for your time, look forward to hearing from you. Hydroidy polyp. <Please read here: http://wetwebmedia.com/hydrozoans.htm and the linked FAQs file above. Bob Fenner>

Scyphozoa Question 6/16/08 Hi, <Greg> I have discovered that I have what appears to be several jellyfish (Scyphozoans) in an aquarium I use for experiments. The system (less than 1 gallon) is unfiltered with no outside inputs except for a very small amount of air from an air stone. I had ordered some rotifers about a year ago and placed them in the system. <Ahh!> They did not last very long. I cleaned off some algae from the side of the system recently and noticed jellyfish that are about 2 mm maximum in size. I am assuming jellyfish eggs or planula came in the rotifers batch I received last year. <Likely so> Their locomotion is identical to larger jellies. They have a clear/translucent bell, some reddish/maroon color inside the bell and translucent tentacles or oral arms. <Neato> Have you ever heard of captive jellyfish outside of a large institutional (city/corporate) aquarium? <Oh yes... in fact, a friend, Jim Stime, makes/sells Jelliquariums... and I saw some very nice, much cheaper models a couple weeks back at the Interzoo show in Germany... it's a biz> Do you know of sources I could use to identify these guys? <Mmm... am referring you to Jim Stime here... you can also reach him via Jelliquarium (.com)> I cannot provide a picture easily. They are too small for my camera equipment. <Macro settings, large file size... cropping...> -- Thank you, Greg S. Hurley <Ahh! Had a fine H.S. Geometry instructor with your family name here in San Diego... years back! Cheers! Bob Fenner>
Re: Scyphozoa Question 6/16/08 Hello Gregg and Bob, The jellyfish portion of the hobby is just now becoming possible. As such there is very little information available... but its increasing. I have kept, for only a short time, Ctenophores, but have not been involved with their reproductive cycle. Moon jellyfish are the most common and have the greatest amount of research and information available. These are the pale white discs with short fringe tentacles around the rim and the familiar four-leaf clover pattern within the bell. Most jellies have a polyp stage where the medusa strobilates or a-sexually buds off from the oral disc portion of the polyp. Once the juvenile has freed himself he is now called an Ephyra. It takes another 60+ days to raise these jellies to 2 or 3 inches. Here is a short video of my jellyfish production system >> http://www.lafishguys.com/midwater/JellyNursery001.htm << Based on your comment about " some reddish/maroon color inside the bell " I suspect what you are either seeing the food stuff brought up into the stomach of a Moon jelly species or you may possibly have a species of Sea Nettle, Chryasora species. These tend to have much longer tentacles... and ones that sting too. Aside from the Upside-down Jellyfish all other species typically require a tank that keeps the jellies suspended once they have bud-off from the polyp. Here is an article I wrote on the process >> http://www.jelliquarium.com/DocumentPage.aspx?id=1034 << There are only a few good books available on jellies. Most are written for 4th graders. Let me know if I can help you further. Jim Stime, Jr. 805-241-7140 Aquarium Design www.aquarium-design.com MyFishTank.com www.myfishtank.com Midwater Systems www.jelliquarium.com LA Fishguys www.lafishguys.com <Ahh! Thank you Jim. BobF>

Re: Scyphozoa Question 6/16/08 Hi Bob, >> I saw some very nice, much cheaper models a couple weeks back at the Interzoo show in Germany... << Can you tell me anything about these systems ? Jim Stime, Jr. Most impt.... they were very nice... and cheap... like about a fourth of yours in cost... Trouble if they're offered in your mkt. for shore. B.

Re: Scyphozoa Question 6/16/08 Bob and Jim, <Mr. H.> Thanks for the info. I think I might have to get into jellyfish. Sounds like a fun new challenge. <Are indeed> Thank you, Greg S. Hurley <Welcome Greg. BobF>

DIY Food 3/23/07 Hi Bob. <Hello Brandon in Bob's stead.> I have been making my own DIY food. <Cool.> I have put in sliced and fresh jellyfish in it. <Hmmm. What kind of grocery store do you have in town?> Blend it with all the other food. Some said that jellyfish is not in the diet of fish and corals so I was wondering if it will cause any harm. <This is sort of true. There are fish that will eat them such as the Banner Fish, Arrow Crabs have bee known to eat them as well as certain other fish and snails.> I only considered the addition of jellyfish after looking up for its nutritional value. It is part of the diet of sea turtle. <This is true.> Is it all right to have jellyfish as part of the diet for fish and corals?

Keeping upside-down jellies 4/10/06 Hey, you guys are awesome! There is so much info on your site, I could look at this stuff all day long--and almost have! I have a question about upside-down jellies. I take care of a 125 gallon tank with 8 jellies in it. The company that owns this tank has a budget on how much they can spend on the tank so they don't have the best set-up for it--they went the cheap route. <If it works...> I am looking into getting new equipment for this tank, tell me, if you had a 125 gallon tank with 8 jellies, what would you get for the tank? <...? Lighting, filtration?> I've been researching non-stop in books and on the internet to get as many opinions as I can and you guys seem to know your stuff! So, to be specific: What kind of substrate would you have, would you have any plants? <Soft, fine coral sand... and yes... vascular plants from the same area as this species... might be able to be collected...> Would you have a protein skimmer, how about a UV sterilizer? <Yes to the skimmer, not likely a UV> How about the lights, what would be the best lights for them? <T-5 fluorescents likely...> What and how much would you feed them and how often would you feed them? <Depends on the species... are these Cassiopeia? http://jellieszone.com/captivejellies.htm> And lastly, I have been having a red/brown algae problem-- it is like a sheet of algae over the top of the substrate. I stir it up daily and that seems to help for awhile--until the next day and I have to do it again. I've been researching ways to treat the stuff, but I am so skeptical because I don't want to harm them and I know how sensitive and delicate they are. Thank you so much for your help, it is greatly appreciated! Candace <... See WWM re controlling BGA. Bob Fenner>

Tiny Jellyfish 2/23/06 Hi Guys! <Lesley> Hope you are keeping well - it's been a while since I last contacted you so I hope you are all ok. Two days ago, in the smaller of our two marine tanks, I noticed three, tiny white jellyfish-type critters - literally, the mushroom shape, but no tentacles - quite "stiff" in structure and jerky in movement as opposed to the more fluid, typical jellyfish. They were about 2mm - 3mm in diameter and were "swimming" around the tank being ignored by the fishy occupants. I think they're cute! Anyway, today, I counted 7 of these tiny critters, varying in size from about 1mm to 3mm across the top of the "mushroom". I still think they're cute but have no idea what they actually are or where they came from as we haven't added anything new to the tank for several months. I wondered if you could help. Sorry the description is so vague. Also, they are too small to photograph clearly. Any light you can shed on this would be most appreciated! Many thanks! Lesley Saxton <There are quite a few Scyphozoan and Hydrozoan Medusoid animals that can strobilize from hard surfaces introduced in our marine systems... Use these terms in your search tools... and you'll see. Bob Fenner>

Upside-Down Jellies 2/23/06 Hey, you guys are awesome! There is so much info on your site, I could look at this stuff all day long--and almost have! I have a question about upside-down jellies. I take care of a 125 gallon tank with 8 jellies in it. The company that owns this tank has a budget on how much they can spend on the tank so they don't have the best set-up for it--they went the cheap route. I am looking into getting new equipment for this tank, tell me, if you had a 125 gallon tank with 8 jellies, what would you get for the tank? <...? Please see the new: Jelliquarium.com site here> I've been researching non-stop in books and on the internet to get as many opinions as I can and you guys seem to know your stuff! <Do you have the works of Dave Wrobel? Search re his name...> So, to be specific: What kind of substrate would you have, would you have any plants? Would you have a protein skimmer, how about a UV sterilizer? How about the lights, what would be the best lights for them? What and how much would you feed them and how often would you feed them? And lastly, I have been having a red/brown alga problem-- it is like a sheet of alga over the top of the substrate. I stir it up daily and that seems to help for awhile--until the next day and I have to do it again. I've been researching ways to treat the stuff, but I am so skeptical because I don't want to harm them and I know how sensitive and delicate they are. Thank you so much for your help, it is greatly appreciated! Candace <Keep searching, reading... Bob Fenner>

Baby jellies... or some other creature? 1/4/06 Hi crew, <Chris> Sheesh. I had to get creative to photograph these critters. I snagged one with an eyedropper, placed it in a water drop on a slide, and popped it into my $20 National Geographic 'scope. After removing the eyepiece shield, I was able to snap a few photos of reasonable enough quality for ID purposes... I hope. <Neat> These pics are slightly out of focus, but the best I could get and still get the whole thing. ('scope/lens/user? limitations) I've seen some dozens of these, over the past few days, in my 55G saltwater tank. I'm seeing fewer lately, due to losses in my power heads and/or filtration, I suppose. (Or predation?) <A combo. no doubt> I didn't notice them today, until swishing around my LR with a turkey baster... blowing off some food that had 'settled'. (Perhaps these had 'settled' too... and I stirred them up?) <Likely so> Anyhow, they look for all the world like mini-jellyfish of some sort, though I couldn't imagine from whence they came. My only recent addition is a 6" ball of Caulerpa Racemosa from my QT. (Note that this QT also contains assorted amphipods, worms, and other tiny marine life that has accumulated over time) The Caulerpa had been in the QT for three weeks. <Mmm, are some sort of Medusoid life> Most are about the size of this period. (Some are a bit larger) The photos show the rest of my observation. At "rest", they're full of water, their "valve" is closed, and you can see a few small protrusions between the two dark spots at the valve end. To move, they appear to expel water through the 'valve', and they contract axially, while extending longitudinally. (Moving away from the 'valve' end, of course) <Yes> Enough of my rambling, I suppose. Please edit and ditch any irrelevant babbling as you see fit. I won't mind. Do these look like anything you've seen before? <Mmm, yes... juvenile "jellies" of some sort (Scyphozoans, Hydrozoans) or Ctenophorans...> Feel free to whack me in the head with a book of your choice, if these are something very common that I should've found on a simple web search. (I looked, but perhaps not hard enough) Tell me if you need more info, tank specs/inhabitants, etc... Thanks in advance, Chris

Comb Jellyfish 12/13/05 Hi Bob, <Jimbo> Quick note. See attached picture <Nice> The jellyfish product line keeps growing. I just received a shipment of Comb Jellies out of Key West last week. <How old are most comb jellies? Most are in their teens (Ctenophora)> Under the MH their fine rows of hairs reflect the light in a UFO landing strip type light show. Awesome ! Jim Stime, Jr. Resplendent Group Aquarium Design www.aquarium-design.com MyFishTank.com www.myfishtank.com Midwater Systems www.jelliquarium.com Centropyge. Net www.centropyge.net MACNA X www.masla.com/macnax.html
<Beauty. Bob Fenner sans list>

Jellyfish System 9/20/05 hi Bob, <Jimbo> well, it is the night before i drive out to Las Vegas for the Super Zoo pet trade show to exhibit the JelliQuarium. i hope i have everything packed :) <Me too!> i have not had much of a chance to get all the Jellyfish things together that we spoke of as i have been busy getting everything for the trade show squared away but i do want to get some stuff to you. i am working on the advertisement for both FAMA and Aquarium Fish Magazine. you were correct about FAMA's circulation being down, its around 10,000/ mth, AFM is up around 50,000/ mth. i asked for Susan Steele but she was not around. i am working with Craig Horowitz. <Good... I called re Sue... s/w Alicia Jordan... who is heading up FAMA... said Sue had "not elected" to move down... was consulting somewhat... I'd call Bowtie/Fancy corp. and s/w Alicia re who in turn to speak with> the scientific article written by Kevin Raskof i mentioned is attached as a PDF. it is a great article. <Will take a look/see> also attached are pictures i took of the various stages of growing Moon Jellyfish, Aurelia aurita.... <Very nice> 2027 polyps 2031 polyps 2039 sm jelly 2040 two sm jellies 2058 current holding / growing system 2077 Ephyra ( babies ) 2078 Ephyra ( babies ) 2097 Mastigias papua sp. 2098 Mastigias papua sp. have a great time in Kona next month, i will be thinking of you in paradise :) <And joining me soon I hope/trust. BobF> Jim Stime, Jr. Resplendent Group Aquarium Design < http://www.aquarium-design.com/> www.aquarium-design.com MyFishTank.com < http://www.myfishtank.com/> www.myfishtank.com Midwater Systems < http://www.jellyfishtanks.com/> www.jellyfishtanks.com Centropyge. Net < http://www.centropyge.net/> www.centropyge.net MACNA X < http://www.masla.com/macnax.html> www.masla.com/macnax.html

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