Have you been feeling a bit stressed out recently? If so, take a look at this amazing video created by the Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute (MBARI).
The video shows 29 different species of jellyfish, pulsating gently to music as they swim around in the water. It’s 10 minutes of total calmness and has a sort of meditative quality to it.
“From tiny, delicate drifters, to giant deep-sea denizens, jellies come in a variety of beautiful and mesmerizing forms,” says MBARI. “There are many different kinds of gelatinous animals in the deep, but here we are featuring the umbrella-shaped animals that swim by pulsing a bell and usually have tentacles trailing behind their mellow flowing movement.”
MBARI says that “most people underestimate the true diversity of this dazzling group of animals.” Taxonomically, they are far more varied than a handful of the most common examples used to represent “jellyfish”. In fact, they aren’t even fish but are invertebrates or animals with no backbone.
These animals are endlessly fascinating and have existed on earth for millions of years, before even the dinosaurs. They live in every single ocean on earth, and here’s an interesting fact: eat and poop from the same orifice! Yum!
The first clip in the video was captured by MBARI’s new camera system shooting in 4K at depths of up to 2.4 miles deep. It’s fitted to a remote-operated vehicle and is capable of capturing clearer and higher resolution images and video than ever before.
They really are incredible creatures. I think my personal favourite might be the Lampshade Jelly at 5:52. As its name suggests, it is uncannily like a lampshade that my grandmother used to own!
Which is your favourite?
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