TravisTheJellyfish
Community Member
- Joined
- Oct 21, 2016
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Yep, definitely upside down jellies (Cassiopea sp.). You made two very good observations-
1) They swim towards the bottom because this species actually spends most of their time upside down. They have symbiotic algae like corals so it benefits them to sit upside down and point their tentacles towards the sun.
2) Upside down jellies are naturally blue but they typically appear golden brown because of the symbiotic algae living in their body. If you grew them in the dark, they would all turn blue. It’s normal for them to vary a little in color too, some have more or less algae living in their tissues.
Upside down jellyfish are a very common hitchhiker in reef aquariums. They have a polyp stage (also like corals) and that polyp stage rides on on live rock, corals etc. They can lay dormant for quite some time before they decide to start making baby jellies. You may have had them for months and not known it.
1) They swim towards the bottom because this species actually spends most of their time upside down. They have symbiotic algae like corals so it benefits them to sit upside down and point their tentacles towards the sun.
2) Upside down jellies are naturally blue but they typically appear golden brown because of the symbiotic algae living in their body. If you grew them in the dark, they would all turn blue. It’s normal for them to vary a little in color too, some have more or less algae living in their tissues.
Upside down jellyfish are a very common hitchhiker in reef aquariums. They have a polyp stage (also like corals) and that polyp stage rides on on live rock, corals etc. They can lay dormant for quite some time before they decide to start making baby jellies. You may have had them for months and not known it.
