What bizarre new jellyfish species have been found in the deep sea recently?
Scientists keep discovering jellyfish in the deep ocean that look like nothing else on Earth - transparent, glowing, and hauntingly alien.
The answer
Deep-sea expeditions continue to discover extraordinary jellyfish species. In 2023, NOAA's Okeanos Explorer documented a stunning new species of Poralia rufescens at 3,800 meters in the Mid-Atlantic. The Deepstaria enigmatica, a bin-liner-shaped jellyfish reaching one meter across, has been filmed fewer than 20 times since its 1967 discovery. In 2022, a new species of giant phantom jellyfish (Stygiomedusa gigantea) was filmed off Monterey Bay at 990 meters, with trailing arms over 10 meters long - only about 130 sightings have ever been recorded. The Crossota millsae, discovered in the Arctic at 2,600 meters, produces bioluminescent displays when disturbed. These finds suggest thousands of jellyfish species remain undescribed.
Source: NOAA
- deep-sea jellyfish
- new species
- marine discovery
More from Ocean & Deep Sea
- How much of the ocean has actually been explored?
- What are hydrothermal vents and how do they support life?
- How do whales communicate across entire ocean basins?
- What are brine pools on the ocean floor?
- What is at the very bottom of the Mariana Trench?
- How do ocean currents regulate global climate?