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Wonderful Things, Hallween Edition: The Gigantic Underworld Medusa [Video]

Stygiomedusa gigantea is a titanic jellyfish seen only about 100 times in the last 100 years which lacks tentacles entirely but appears to be hauling four 33-foot long bolts of funeral bunting instead.

This article was published in Scientific American’s former blog network and reflects the views of the author, not necessarily those of Scientific American


Author’s note: This is the latest post in the Wonderful Things series. You can read more about this series here. Also, my blog survey continues, and all readers -- even new ones -- are invited to take it! Please see the end of this post for details.

Monterey Bay Aquarium has released their semi-regular Halloween video, and this year it features Stygiomedusa gigantea, a titanic jellyfish seen only about 100 times in the last 100 years, which lacks tentacles entirely but appears to be hauling four 33-foot long bolts of funeral bunting instead. It also has a cute li’l buddy.


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Stygiomedusa is yet another example of the astounding diversity of life present right here on Earth, no rocket or rover required (although an ROV does comes in handy), largely unseen and unheralded by humans. Now please excuse me while I go off to construct my Stygiomedusa costume out of black duct tape, a box of Hefty bags, and plush symbiont. Happy Halloween, y’all.

Special Note: I am curious about you, my readers! I’ve teamed up with researcher Paige Brown Jarreau -- author of the blog From the Lab Bench -- to create a survey of all of my readers – new, old, and first-time readers alike. By participating, you’ll be helping me improve The Artful Amoeba and contribute to SCIENCE on blog readership. You will also get FREE science art from Paige's Photography for participating, as well as a chance to win a $50.00 Amazon gift card (100 available, or guaranteed 2 per specific blog included in this survey) or a T-shirt. It should only take 10-15 minutes to complete. You can find the survey here: http://bit.ly/mysciblogreaders