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A rare sighting of an otherworldly creature is always a thrill! This deepstaria jellyfish was spotted during the #AtacamaTrenchAncients expedition off the coast of Chile. This member of the Ulmaridae family was first described in 1967. It was named after Deepstar 4000, a deep-submergence vehicle designed by Jacques Cousteau and built by Westinghouse in 1965. David F. Gruber — dubbed “the Jellyfish Guy” by peers — thinks jellyfish have lots of charisma, and deepstaria, in particular, are one of the more obscure and interesting jellyfish he’s ever encountered. He spent several years examining jellyfish as a potential food source and medicine. According to a 2018 paper by Gruber et al., in the 45+ years since its formal description, there have been few recorded observations of deepstaria due to the challenging nature of encountering these delicate soft-bodied organisms. However, recent advances in our ability to observe squishy creatures in their natural environments are shedding light on these mysterious creatures. Lacking stinging tentacles like other jellies, these animals capture their dinner by enveloping prey in their bag-like bodies. The veiny network of channels in their thin outer membrane is a gastrovascular system consisting of canals that deliver food to a stomach located at the top of the animal’s bell. In 2018, Gruber and colleagues on the E/V Nautilus observed a “jelly-fall” carcass with a high density of crustaceans feeding on its tissue and surrounding the carcass. They believe jellies and other gelatinous zooplankton play an outsizedbut understudied role as major food sources and biodiversity drivers in the deep Ocean.

David Gruber

President & Founder, Project CETI / Distinguished Professor of Biology and Professor of Environmental Science, CUNY

4mo

I think Deepstaria may be my favorite jellyfish in the ocean!

Chris Roper

President: RoperResourcesltd.com

4mo

Sometimes you see something that is just truly amazing, this is just truly amazing. Wonderful video SOS, thanks for posting.

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