In Writing, we have been looking at explanations. This week we were learning about how do Jellyfish sting? Read some of our explanations below..

How Do Jellyfish Sting?

Jellyfish are invertebrates which fall under the classification of Cephalopoda. Their gelatinous main body is shaped like a bell. They have 4 long tentacles and around 24 shorter ones. They use these to sting prey and eat it.

But how do they sting prey? Well, it all starts off witch Mechanical or Chemical Stimuli setting off a reaction by touching their tentacles. There are hundreds of Nematocysts along the tentacles that open up on contact to let seawater in, forcing a barb to shoot out onto the skin.

The venom in the barb of some jellyfish, such as the box species can occasionally kill you if left untreated, but usually it is just painful, and you might feel dizzy or nauseous. There will also be red spots/rashes on the area that was stung. You must get rid of the jellyfish as the barbs can still activate even once the jellyfish is dead. Soak the stings in vinegar or sea water for the best remedy. Fresh water will change the saltiness of the wounds and the barbs will activate again. The same may happen if you urinate on the wounds.

Some animals, such as turtles and sunfish have evolved natural defences. Their teeth point backwards to stop the jellyfish escaping once they eat them and they have tough skin to stop the stings. Small fish can use the jellyfish tentacles as nets by hiding in them while never touching them to keep their predators away. Lobster larva can hitch a ride on the bell and feed off the jellyfish while conserving their energy that would otherwise be spent moving around. Nudibranchs, a type of sea cucumber, covered in a protective gel can even eat the jellyfish tentacles to get energy for their own poisonous barbs on their back.

All in all, jellyfish have a pretty clever defence and attack mechanism that can be very useful for catching prey but can also be used by other animals. So if you ever feel a sharp sting and see red spots make sure you remove the jellyfish and treat it with SEA WATER or VINEGAR - NOT FRESH WATER!!!

Glossary

Invertebrates - Animals without a backbone

Cephalopoda - A group of animals including Octopuses, Squid, etc.

Gelatinous - Having a texture similar to Jelly

Stimuli - Things that create a reaction.

Nematocysts - Elliptical pod that houses a sharp barb filled with poison.

Larva - Bab fish, lobsters, insects, etc.

By Gregor Watts 

How the jellyfish stings!

The jellyfish has a jelly-like consistency which is made out of mesoglea. Most species of jellyfish are transparent. Mesoglea is transparent and a gel like substance so it would feel like a jelly texture.

A jellyfish has to face an opalescent which can grab its tentacles and store it in its back! The leatherback turtle and the sunfish are two other predators they have to face. The sunfish have four teeth used to crush their food and more teeth in their throat to finish off the job.

If a mechanical or chemical stimulus gets set off , a microscopic barb which is the shape of a harpoon. It will inject its venom which will get shot into your skin. This harpoon is called nematocyst. It is a whip like hollow tube and jelly fish use it to defend itself and capture its prey.

Once you get stung,there are multiple ways to prevent worser pain. Try not to pee or put fresh water on the area off the sting. Peeing on it will make the nematocyst release more venom. Hot water, ice, vinegar and hydrocortisone creams also help to ease the pain. Shaving cream may help too??

I hope you take the advice to treat a sting and see how a jellyfish stings.

 By Flint 

How the jellyfish stings

THE DESCRIPTION OF A JELLYFISH

The jellyfish is made out of mesoglea. which has the consistency of jelly ,hence the name jellyfish. Some kinds of jellyfish are transparent but a few species are not. Like the lion mane it has some orange parts inside of the jellyfish making it not transparent.

THE PREDATORS

The predators of the jellyfish are the opalescent sea slug. These slugs are immune to the venom. so they eat the tentacles of the jellyfish and store the venom in their spines for defense later. They are more like the sunfish. They can eat the jellyfish because they have teeth in their throat so the jellyfish can't get out. There is one more, it is the leatherback sea turtle. They can eat the jellyfish because of their backwards facing teeth on the roof of the mouth.

HOW THE STING WORKS

Whenever a mechanical or stimuli chemical activates the tentacles. when that happens. The tentacles shoot a microscopic harpoon that works at 100000th of a second making it one of the fastest procese in nature. Then the venom comes out of the harpoons.

HOW TO TREAT A STING

You can treat a jellyfish sting by keeping the affected area under salt water not fresh water because the change in salt levels will make it worse. So if you pee on it that will not work, it is just a common folk remedy. But you can put vinegar on it and that will make the sting better.

CONCLUSION

This is how to treat a sting from a jellyfish and how it works with all the predators as well.

By Arlo 

All about a jellyfish

Jellyfish description

A jellyfish is a gelatinous creature. It has a mesoglea body meaning it is squishy and see-through. The reason why it's squishy is because it is 95% water meaning it is like a stress ball. It has a bell-like head that can sometimes have tentacles on it. Some jellyfish have short tentacles but some like the Lion's Mane Jellyfish have tentacles that grow up to 100meters long.

How a sting happens

The tentacles on a jellyfish have a nematocyst which is a tiny tube with very very small pods and microscopic harpoons with the venom in it in the pods. When the sensors on the nematocyst are triggered by something the little pods open up and fill with water forcing the harpoons to shoot out.

Predators

You may think that something as powerful as this has no predators, however you are mistaken. Jellyfish have predators with really tough skin which helps when the jellyfish attack. Predators include Leatherback turtles and Sun Fish but also some Sea Slugs. The Sea Slugs take the tentacles of the jellyfish so they can get the venom and can store it in their spikes for their own defense. But some fish use it for protection from other predators, they dodge and weave through the tentacles so predators cant get them.

Ending

Overall Jellyfish are such fascinating creatures with so many secrets. I hope you learned something new and also enjoyed it.

Rory Harrold

How does a jellyfish sting?

Jellyfish are gelatinous-like creatures from the ocean. They are made up of a substance called mesoglea, a translucent gel-like substance that makes up the body of a jellyfish. Baby jellyfish look like little pulsating flowers in the ocean, and even them can sting.

The sting works via a chemical or mechanical stimuli, basically whatever it touches. The venom is ejected using a nematocyst, a little hollow tube that contains the harpoon-like tubes that inject the venom. These lie coiled under high osmotic pressure that is released by chemical or mechanical stimuli.

Jelly fish are strong, but not invincible. They are vulnerable to the heavier-armored sea creatures, such as the leatherback sea turtle and the sunfish. Sea turtles have backwards-facing teeth on the roof of their mouths to ensure no escape for whatever gets trapped in their jaws. The sunfish has another set of teeth farther down its mouth, behind its cheeks.

In conclusion, jellyfish are and can be dangerous. Depending on where you swim, some jellyfish stings can be life-threatening.

By Hazel Evans