MBARI (Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute) | Floating in the deep with the bloody-belly comb jelly. ❤️ @MBARIvideo | Uploaded April 2024 | Updated October 2024, 17 hours ago.
Bloody-belly comb jellies are ctenophores. Like other comb jellies they navigate through the water by beating their shimmering hair like cilia. The sparkling display we see in this video clip comes from light diffracting from these tiny transparent cilia. At the depths where this comb jelly lives it’s nearly invisible to predators and prey because the color red appears black and allows the animal to blend into the dark background. These twilight zone treasures are found in the North Pacific Ocean and measure about 6 inches across.
Dive into our Animals of the Deep Gallery: mbari.co/AnimalsOfTheDeep
Bloody-belly comb jellies are ctenophores. Like other comb jellies they navigate through the water by beating their shimmering hair like cilia. The sparkling display we see in this video clip comes from light diffracting from these tiny transparent cilia. At the depths where this comb jelly lives it’s nearly invisible to predators and prey because the color red appears black and allows the animal to blend into the dark background. These twilight zone treasures are found in the North Pacific Ocean and measure about 6 inches across.
Dive into our Animals of the Deep Gallery: mbari.co/AnimalsOfTheDeep
