Cloning Without a Brain

How often do you think about jellyfish? If your answer isn’t ‘everyday’, you might need to make some adjustments in your life.

Jellyfish don’t have hearts or brains, yet they can clone themselves. They are believed to be over 500 million years old. They have been to outer space.

They have been to o u t e r s p a c e.

You know the blue whale? The biggest mammal on our planet? Right. Well some jellyfish have tentacles longer than the blue whale. No big deal.

Alright, I’m done showering you with jellyfish facts for the time being. Let me tell you about the one pictured above. This White-spotted jellyfish called to me like the wardrobe called to Lucy Pevensie. All jellyfish seem to have an extra majestic way of moving throughout the water, but this one appeared somewhat like a flower blooming underwater with each movement. It had me completely transfixed and I knew that I would never be the same.

That wasn’t the only jellyfish I spotted.

The Black Sea Nettle jellyfish also waved hi to me once. With tentacles over 3 feet long, this one had a way of demanding every ounce of my attention. They are still a bit of a mystery in the world of jellyfish, and I think that is one of my favorite things about them.

Jellyfish are made of 85% - 98% water. Do you understand what this means? It means that if a jellyfish were to wash up on land they would almost entirely disappear over time. Am I the only one who thinks this fact is completely insane, utterly hardcore, incredibly heartbreaking but also absolutely beautiful?

I look at jellyfish and think about how they existed even before dinosaurs. That is between 300 and 500 million years of existence. I honestly can’t even comprehend what that means.

I’m a marine life junkie. Aquatic creatures have such a regal way about them. Patrolling the submerged galaxies in depths unheard of. What better animal to monitor the sunken realm from prehistoric times than jellyfish: the beautifully hypnotizing sea jellies with deathly stings amidst mesmerizing resilience.

Name another species that is believed to be immortal. Nothing comes to mind? That’s right, some scientists believe certain jellyfish to be immortal! I tell you, I can’t believe we exist on the same planet as these magnificent beings.

Speaking of these magnificent beings, what do you call a group of them? Lots of animals have designated for groups, right? Well, I believe jellyfish have the most unique group name of all.

Besides the occasional ‘bloom’ or ‘swarm’, a group of jellyfish is often referred to as a smack. Now tell me that isn’t the most perfect group name you have ever heard.

A SMACK of jellyfish.

It is so opposite to what you think when you see them floating about in the undersea kingdom, but it also somehow perfectly encapsulates what it does to you when you see one. You are utterly gobsmacked in their presence.

So let’s get this straight:

These ancient space-explorers can grow bigger than the world’s biggest mammal, have no pumping hearts and no brains yet they have the ability to clone themselves if you cut them in half.

These creatures are the most interesting and magical animals I have ever encountered. Sometimes what I read about them truly doesn’t seem real. Observing jellyfish has a somewhat stupefying effect. It definitely takes you on a trip to Wonderland.

Next time you’re casually diving around in oceans, be sure to wear a wetsuit (they protect you from getting stung!) and keep your eyes open for the mesmerizing creation that is the jellyfish.