Cubozoa
15 species
Box jellyfish (class Cubozoa) are cnidarian invertebrates distinguished by their box-like (i.e. cube-shaped) body. Some species of box jellyfish produce potent venom delivered by contact with their tentacles. Stings from some species, including Chironex fleckeri, Carukia barnesi, Malo kingi, and a few others, are extremely painful and often fatal to humans.
Although the notoriously dangerous species of box jellyfish are largely restricted to the tropical Indo-Pacific region, various species of box jellyfish can be found widely in tropical and subtropical oceans (between 42° N and 42 °S), including the Atlantic Ocean and the east Pacific Ocean, with species as far north as California (Carybdea confusa), the Mediterranean Sea (Carybdea marsupialis) and Japan (such as Chironex yamaguchii), and as far south as South Africa (for example, Carybdea branchi) and New Zealand (such as Copula sivickisi). Though box jellies are known to inhabit the Indo-Pacific region, there is very little collected data or studies proving this. It was only in 2014, that the first ever box jelly sightings (Tripedalia cystophora) were officially published in Australia, Thailand and the Indian Ocean. There are three known species in Hawaiian waters, all from the genus Carybdea: C. alata, C. rastoni, and C. sivickisi. Within these tropical and subtropical environments, box jellyfish tend to reside closer to shore. They have been spotted in near-shore habitats such as mangroves, coral reefs, kelp forests, and sandy beaches.
Recently, in 2023, a new genus and species of box jellyfish was discovered in the Indo-Pacific region, specifically the Gulf of Thailand. Discovered and named after scientist L. A. Gershwin, this new species of box jellyfish, Gershwinia thailandensis, is a member of the Carukiidae family. Gershwinia thailandensis is described as its own new species as it has sensory structures with specialized horns and lacks a common digestive system among box jelly, the stomach gastric phaecellae. Due to this and other observations, structural and biological, Gershwinia thailandensis was accepted as a new species of box jellyfish.
Box jellyfish (class Cubozoa) are cnidarian invertebrates distinguished by their box-like (i.e. cube-shaped) body. Some species of box jellyfish produce potent venom delivered by contact with their tentacles. Stings from some species, including Chironex fleckeri, Carukia barnesi, Malo kingi, and a few others, are extremely painful and often fatal to humans.
Although the notoriously dangerous species of box jellyfish are largely restricted to the tropical Indo-Pacific region, various species of box jellyfish can be found widely in tropical and subtropical oceans (between 42° N and 42 °S), including the Atlantic Ocean and the east Pacific Ocean, with species as far north as California (Carybdea confusa), the Mediterranean Sea (Carybdea marsupialis) and Japan (such as Chironex yamaguchii), and as far south as South Africa (for example, Carybdea branchi) and New Zealand (such as Copula sivickisi). Though box jellies are known to inhabit the Indo-Pacific region, there is very little collected data or studies proving this. It was only in 2014, that the first ever box jelly sightings (Tripedalia cystophora) were officially published in Australia, Thailand and the Indian Ocean. There are three known species in Hawaiian waters, all from the genus Carybdea: C. alata, C. rastoni, and C. sivickisi. Within these tropical and subtropical environments, box jellyfish tend to reside closer to shore. They have been spotted in near-shore habitats such as mangroves, coral reefs, kelp forests, and sandy beaches.
Recently, in 2023, a new genus and species of box jellyfish was discovered in the Indo-Pacific region, specifically the Gulf of Thailand. Discovered and named after scientist L. A. Gershwin, this new species of box jellyfish, Gershwinia thailandensis, is a member of the Carukiidae family. Gershwinia thailandensis is described as its own new species as it has sensory structures with specialized horns and lacks a common digestive system among box jelly, the stomach gastric phaecellae. Due to this and other observations, structural and biological, Gershwinia thailandensis was accepted as a new species of box jellyfish.
