goodmorningpapua.com – A diver who was recording underwater situations around the coast of Papua New Guinea managed to get a picture of a super unique animal. The animal is a giant jellyfish with a head shape similar to a soccer ball.
The video he uploaded to Facebook, which immediately sparked a lot of amazement from netizens. As stated by the diver, the swimming movements are “quite fast compared to other jellyfish.”
In addition to its unique round head shape, this jellyfish also has four bundles of tentacles of different sizes. As a common jellyfish, the body is transparent, and shows red internal organs.
The discovery of this unique jellyfish video also surprised scientists. Throughout its history, the species with the Latin name Chirodectes maculatus is very difficult to find in the high seas. Based on the researcher’s records, only two times C Maculatus can be recorded. One is through a photo from decades ago, while the second moment is in a video that a diver in Papua New Guinea got accidentally.
C Maculatus has a habitat in the waters between Australia and New Guinea. Unlike most jellyfish whose tentacles are poisonous to humans, C Maculatus is safe if touched by divers or people on the beach. However, these animals are quite reclusive and scientists still don’t understand why these unique jellyfish are so difficult for them to track.
“So far, we do not have a comprehensive conclusion about the lifestyle and nature of the Chirodectes maculatus species,” said Allen Collins, a zoologist at the Smithsonian Institute when confirmed by Motherboard. “We certainly consider this amateur video a valuable find, unfortunately such videos have not been able to add to the variety of our knowledge about this rare jellyfish species.”
C. maculatus was first studied in depth through an article published in the journal in 2005. The authors were a team of Australian scientists led by Paul Cornelius. They first caught the specimen dead in 1997. Because it was the first time it had been discovered, Australian scientists were reluctant to dissect it, and only preserved the body of the giant jellyfish. So far, scientists’ understanding of C Maculatus has only been based on external observations of its body.
Collins said the patterns on the bodies of the jellyfish caught on camera were quite different from specimens preserved in Australia. That is, the type of pattern may be different for each C Maculatus. “It is also possible that this is a different species but is still related to C Maculatus. What is clear is that the jellyfish in the video belongs to the Chirodectes family category,” he said.
The fact that C Maculatus almost never succeeded to be captured in a photo or video also surprised Collins. This jellyfish is unique in shape and large in size. Fishermen or divers should see it often. “But that is the beauty of the mystery of the deep ocean. Humans need to explore more often to understand what’s inside.”