Their speed and vision leads some researchers to believe that box jellyfish actively hunt their prey, mainly shrimp and small fish. Some of these eyes are surprisingly sophisticated, with a lens and cornea, an iris that can contract in bright light, and a retina. They have clusters of eyes on each side of the box. Most notably, box jellyfish can swim-at maximum speeds approaching four knots-whereas most species of jellyfish float wherever the current takes them, with little control over their direction. Chironex fleckeri is the largest of the box jellyfish, with body sizes reaching up to one foot in diameter and thick, bootlace-like tentacles up to 10 feet long.īox jellyfish have traits that set them apart from other jellyfish. This includes the Australian box jellyfish ( Chironex fleckeri), considered the most venomous marine animal. The nematocyst is a complex intracellular structure unique to Cnidaria. While box jellyfish are found in warm coastal waters around the world, the lethal varieties are found primarily in the Indo-Pacific region and northern Australia. Of the 50 or so species of box jellyfish, also called sea wasps, only a few have venom that can be lethal to humans. ![]() It has been described as 'the most lethal jellyfish in the world', with at least 63 known deaths in Australia from 1884 to 1996. But don’t choose the mountains over the ocean just yet. Chironex fleckeri, commonly known as the sea wasp, is a species of highly venomous box jellyfish found in coastal waters from northern Australia and New Guinea north to the Philippines and Vietnam. People and animals unfortunate enough to be injected with this poison may experience paralysis, cardiac arrest, and even death, all within a few minutes of being stung. ![]() ![]() They may not look dangerous, but the sting from a box jellyfish could be enough to send you to Davy Jones's locker-a watery grave, that is.īox jellyfish, named for their body shape, have tentacles covered in biological booby traps known as nematocysts - tiny darts loaded with poison.
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