Published on: Saturday, April 03, 2010 |
Eric Yu SY, an aquarist with the Green Connection - a conservation and environmental education project by the Aquatica Aquarium and Discovery Centre near here - said his colleagues Danny Sanni, Ferron Avoi and Koh Kim San were the first to spot the unusual-looking jellyfish while feeding fish in the cages in Kg Serusup on March 22.
Yu, who actually did a thesis on the Sarawak rafflesia species when completing his Bachelor of Science (Hons) in Biology, said the friends thought there was something odd with the jellyfish and informed him the following day.
After a visit to Tuaran, he immediately saw what caught their attention.
"This pink jellyfish is slightly different from the one I have seen on the Tuaran beach," said the 38-year-old who fell in love with the gelatinous sea creatures after being stung by a box jellyfish four years ago.
Although his colleagues mentioned to him they have sighted similar-looking pink jellyfish in Kudat and Sipadan previously, he was, nevertheless, convinced they were on to something here.
"There are always new discoveries coming from the marine world and there is always a chance that this pink jellyfish has not been described yet as no research has been carried out on the jellyfish species in Sabah waters."
Yu believes the type trapped in the floating cage belonged to one of the jellyfish orders, the Rhizostomeae, a common swarm in Tuaran waters, especially in the peak season, pointing out those under this order do not have tentacles around the bell and have thick eight thick organs called "oral arms" under the bell.
These jellyfish also lacks the long deadly tentacles of their infamous cousins of another order, the box jellyfish, which have caused many deaths worldwide, adding the rhizostome jellyfish can grow to 40cm in diameter and weigh up to 5kg.
Prompted by the strange dissimilarities, the former Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia student dug about this type of jellyfish on the Internet but found no pictures or references to it.
"This jellyfish, besides having the eight oral arms, has got long tentacles around the bell, which is abnormal for jellyfish of this order," Yu said.
To take his research further, Yu held the tentacles and felt the stinging sensation was slightly more intense than the oral arms below but not as severe as the box jellyfish encounter years ago.
"The pink jellyfish measured almost a foot in bell diameter and weighed between three and four kg.
"When it was found there were actually a few fish larvae swimming round the oral arms using it as some form symbiotic protection," he said, pointing out jellyfish are known to sting larger fish and feed on them.
The pink jellyfish has been brought back to the Aquatica marine quarantine facility for measurement and observation.
Yu, who intends to pursue his Master of Science degree specifically on jellyfish, plans to send a sample of the jellyfish to scientists for verification and research, adding he was also planning to preserve a sample for his own collection for future research.
A search on the web found between more than 80 and over 350 known species of jellyfish but scientists estimate that there could be 2,000 different species in the world.
