What Do Jellyfish Look Like, and Can You Eat Them? A Guide to Jellyfish Morphology and Edibility
Jellyfish are very beautiful marine creatures with a great many species. If you see blue-purple ripples along the seaside in the evening, it is very likely to be a large swarm of jellyfish. Below, let us take a closer look at what jellyfish look like and whether they can be eaten.
1. Basic introduction to jellyfish
1. What do jellyfish look like?
A jellyfish's body looks like an upside-down bowl, or like an umbrella. Around the edge of the umbrella-shaped body is a ring of tentacles, and when it floats in the water it appears very leisurely and content. They swim in the sea mainly by expelling water from their bodies and then propelling themselves forward by jet reaction. The tentacles and sensory organs of most jellyfish are radially symmetrical on all four sides. Some jellyfish even have patterns on their bells, and some have other colors too, which is truly remarkable.
2. Where are jellyfish mainly distributed?
There are a great many kinds of jellyfish, and they are also very important plankton in the marine environment. Most jellyfish are distributed in the ocean, and only a few species appear in freshwater. So whether in tropical or temperate waters, in deep water or shallow water, they can be found.
3. Are jellyfish poisonous?
Most jellyfish are indeed poisonous. If you accidentally get stung on the skin by a jellyfish, you will immediately feel a stinging pain and see redness and swelling appear. After being stung, you should hurry back and treat the wound; you can apply a little anti-inflammatory medicine or vinegar, and generally the redness and swelling will disappear in a few days. However, if you experience symptoms such as irregular breathing or difficulty breathing, you must immediately tell the people around you or call for help. At that point you must go to the hospital right away or be rescued by professionals, otherwise there will be a risk to your life.
2. Can jellyfish be eaten?
Many people are curious: jellyfish look so beautiful and are such common creatures in the ocean, so they must be edible. In fact, a jellyfish's body is mostly made up of water, with very little protein and fat. Not all of the many kinds of jellyfish can be eaten, but some are edible. Among the better-known jellyfish species, the edible jellyfish (Rhopilema esculentum) and the moon jellyfish (Aurelia aurita) can be eaten, while most others contain toxins and eating them could endanger your life.
The edible jellyfish is a species with very delicious flesh, and its main varieties include Rhopilema esculentum, the yellow-spotted jellyfish (Rhopilema hispidum), the warty jellyfish (Rhopilema verrilli), and the club-shaped jellyfish (Rhopilema rhopalophorum). Among them, the first two can be eaten. The edible jellyfish has a very crisp and refreshing texture and a nutritional value that is not low, so it is deeply loved by everyone, especially the crisp and refreshing sensation when eaten cold-tossed; no one can resist its temptation.
When buying edible jellyfish, you should learn to distinguish artificial jellyfish. This type of fake jellyfish is mostly made from chemicals and has no nutritional value when eaten, and this is also the behavior of unscrupulous merchants deceiving consumers for profit, so everyone must be careful.