JELLYFISH STINGS
…the mechanism of jellyfish stinging cells is one of the fastest mechanical events in nature…
Jellyfish, sea lice, sea nettle, coral and sea anemone are all equipped with hundreds of thousands of stinging cells. These stinging cells consist of a capsule, containing potent toxins.
The discharge is driven by the building up of a high pressure of 200 atmospheres - this pressure is about 100 times the pressure in a car tire and is similar to the pressure in scuba diving tanks.
When jellyfish come into contact with their target a tubule is fired from the capsule at accelerations of up to 40,000xg – similar to the force of a bullet fired from a gun!
The jellyfish toxins are delivered through the tubule into the prey, resembling a multi-headed poisonous arrow.
| Stimulation by the human skin initiates the discharge process. | High pressure of over 200 atmospheres is built up inside the stinging capsule. | The shaft drills a hole in the skin with 40,000xg of acceleration. | A tubule follows the shaft and injects poison into the skin. |
Jellyfish are considered as very primitive organisms belonging to the Cnidaria family. Jellyfish hunt, eat, reproduce and eventually die. Jellyfish is one of the most ancient organisms on earth. They have been here over 600 million years, long before the dinosaurs.
Jellyfish can be found all over the world. The coastlines of the US, Hawaii, the Mediterranean Sea, Australia, South East Asia and South Africa are all infested with jellyfish some of the time. Worldwide, there are more than 100 million beach goers that are exposed to the jellyfish hazard.
Jellyfish is a passive predator; it does not chase its prey. In order to catch its prey it needs to paralyze it. In a fraction of a second the sting can fire a paralyzing toxic dart to the victim. Once the prey is paralyzed it is either swallowed by the jellyfish (if it's small enough) or it stays glued to the tentacles, where it is slowly digested.
Coral, Sea anemone and hydrozoa are all part of the same phylum as jellyfish called Cnidaria (pronounced with silent C "NIDARIA"). All the cnidarian organisms contain the same stinging cell mechanism.
The most dangerous jellyfish in the world is the Box Jellyfish inhabits the Northeast coast of Australia. This Jellyfish contains the most potent toxin in the marine environment. It is considered extremely dangerous and in a number of cases it proved to be fatal.
