Scientists say they have found a new type of medusa – a type of free-swimming, umbrella-shaped jellyfish. The sea creature, first spotted in 2002 in a deep-sea volcanic structure in seawater south of Tokyo, Japan, has a bright red “X” on its stomach.
The results were published last November in the journal Zootaxa. The researchers named the sea creature because of its distinctive shape
“The species is very different from all deep-sea medusae discovered so far,” said scientist André Morandini in a press release from the São Paulo Research Foundation last week. “It is relatively small, whereas others in such an environment are much larger.”
As for the unique Red Cross, Morandini said it “probably has to do with collecting food.”
S. Pagesi, which has 240 tentacles, was spotted and collected over twenty years ago off Japan’s Ogasawara Islands using a remote-controlled vehicle – the only way to explore the inhospitable waters. In 2020, scientists discovered another specimen of the X-marked sea creature in the same area, but were unable to collect it.
While the discovery of a new species usually requires collecting more than one creature, this medusa was given a name and description based on the capture of just one creature due to its rarity, Morandini explained.
“We decided to publish the description and draw attention to the species present at the site, which has a mineral-rich substrate and has the potential for commercial development,” the scientist said in the press release. “Unfortunately, research in such places cannot be carried out without partners who have such interests.”