Sea+Walnut+-+Mnemiopsis+leidyi


 * __[[image:comb-jelly-mnemiopsis-leidyi.jpg width="204" height="278" align="right"]]Common Name:__** Sea Walnut, Comb Jelly

__**Phyla:**__ Ctenophora

__**Class:**__ Tentaculata

__**Scientific Name:**__ //Mnemiopsis leidyi//


 * __Location:__** Salt Water

__**Size:**__ Can get up to 16mm+ with lobe length.

__**Habitat:**__ North American species were brought into the Black Sea by Russian tankers driving oil to the ports at eastern coast of USA. From the Black Sea they transferred into the Caspian Sea also by tankers driving oil. They live in temperate to subtropical estuaries along the Atlantic coast of North and South America. Also the Black Sea where it flourished and expanded into the Azov, Marmara, eastern Mediterranean, and Caspian Seas. Inhabits coastal areas and surface layers of open sea. Some large ones can spread deeper and even can be found near the bottom in the coastal areas of the Caspian Sea. They are transferred with the currents so they are more abundant near the surface at night where they feed and reproduce.

__**Life Cycle:**__ Self-fertilizing hermaphrodite. The development of gonads and their current state displays definite daily rhythm. The rape eggs that appear at late evening before the midnight, while any their rudiments are visible still at 5pm. The spawning begins at late evening with peak at midnight or late at 1-2am. __**Male and Female Differences:**__ There really is no difference between male and female because both possess both male and female reproductive organs.

__**Facts:**__
 * __Human Impact:__** We kill and transfer many of them when we move our tankers that carry oil. They are very fragile and when hit hard enough they die. The currents from these tankers also carry them away from where they are used to living.
 * Pose no threat to humans
 * A school of these jellys can clear out an entire fish population smaller then them in a matter of a month


 * Zookeeper: Kenzie Davidson**

__**References:**__
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