- Nomura's jellyfish
-
Nomura's Jellyfish 
Nemopilema nomurai in the Kaiyūkan-aquarium of Ōsaka Conservation status Not evaluated (IUCN 3.1)Scientific classification Kingdom: Animalia Phylum: Cnidaria Class: Scyphozoa Order: Rhizostomae Family: Stomolophidae Genus: Nemopilema Species: N. nomurai Binomial name Nemopilema nomurai
(Kishinouye, 1922)Nomura's Jellyfish (エチゼンクラゲ echizen kurage, Nemopilema nomurai) (for some time in the genus Stomolophus) is a very large jellyfish, in the same size class as the lion's mane jellyfish, the largest cnidarian in the world. The diameter of one fully grown is slightly greater than the height of an average fully grown man. The species was named in tribute to Mr. Kan'ichi Nomura (C18–C19), Director General of the Fukui Prefectural Fisheries Experimental Station, who in early December 1921 sent a specimen in a 72-litre wooden tank to Kishinouye, who found that it was unknown and spent some time at the station to study living specimens.[1]
Growing up to 2 m (6.6 ft) in diameter and weighing up to 200 kg (440 lb),[2] Nomura's Jellyfish reside primarily in the waters between China and Japan, primarily centralized in the Yellow Sea and East China Sea. Shin-ichi Uye, Japan's leading expert on the little-studied jellyfish, artificially bred some in his Hiroshima University lab, learning about their life cycle, growth rates and feeding habits. He traveled by ferry between China to Japan in 2009 to confirm they were riding currents to Japanese waters. A U.S. marine scientist, Jennifer Purcell of Western Washington University, has found a correlation between global warming and jellyfish on a much larger scale, in at least 11 locations, including the Mediterranean and North seas, and Chesapeake and Narragansett bays.[3]
In 2009, a 10-tonne fishing trawler, the Diasan Shinsho-maru, capsized off Chiba on Tokyo Bay as its three-man crew tried to haul in a net containing dozens of Nomura's Jellyfish; the three were rescued by another trawler.[4]
Size comparison of a Nomura's jellyfish next to a diver
References
- ^ Hansson, Hans G.. "Biographical Etymology of Marine Organism Names. N & O". Tjärnö Marine Biological Laboratory. http://www.tmbl.gu.se/libdb/taxon/personetymol/petymol.no.html. Retrieved 16 November 2009. "Drs Toyokawa Masaya & Kensuke Yanagi kindly informed about Kanichi Nomura"
- ^ Discovery News -- Monster Jellyfish
- ^ Casey, Michael; Yuasa, Shino (15 November 2009). "Jellyfish swarm northward in warming world". AP. http://www.usnews.com/science/articles/2009/11/15/jellyfish-swarm-northward-in-warming-world.html. Retrieved 16 November 2009. "KOKONOGI, Japan – A blood-orange blob the size of a small refrigerator emerged from the dark waters, its venomous tentacles trapped in a fishing net."
- ^ Ryall, Julian (2 November 2009). "Japanese fishing trawler sunk by giant jellyfish". Telegraph.co.uk. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/earth/6483758/Japanese-fishing-trawler-sunk-by-giant-jellyfish.html. Retrieved 3 November 2009.
External links
- Giant Echizen jellyfish off Japan coast, (BBC News, November 30, 2009)
- Jellyfish Report from National Science Foundation
- Global proliferation of jellyfish (map)[dead link]
- Giant Jellyfish Sink Japanese Trawler (CDNN)
- Giant Jellyfish Invade Japan (National Geographic)
- How do you tackle an invasion of giant jellyfish? (The Times)
- Giant jellyfish invade Japanese coast (Cambodian Online)
- Super blobs' deep impact (The Sydney Morning Herald)
- Chefs prepare for annual giant jellyfish invasion (Pink Tentacle)
- Japanese fishermen brace for giant jellyfish (CNN)
- The Age Of Jellyfish (spectre footnotes (blog), July 31, 2009)
- Giant Jellyfish Head North in Warming World, MSNBC
Categories:- Rhizostomeae
- Megafauna
- Fauna of Japan
Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.
