Jellyfish: The Beautiful Stingers

Jellyfish are beautiful creatures that inhabit all the oceans around the world, from the surface to the deep sea, and have roamed the seas for at least 500 million years, making them the oldest multi-organ animal.  There are over 1,500 types of jellyfish and come in a wide variety of sizes, shapes and colors. Most are semi-transparent or glassy and bell-shaped, measuring less than an inch to more than a foot across the bell, although some may reach seven feet in diameter. The tentacles of some jellyfish can reach lengths greater than 100 feet. Regardless of their size or shape, most jellyfish are very fragile, often containing less than 5% solid organic matter.  These Jellyfish were photographed at the Shedd Aquarium in Chicago