Jelly Scrum

17 responses to “Jelly Scrum”

1. 

   !MimosaMicheMichelle!

   Mar 21, 2006 at 5:49 pm

   It is amazing how such a beautiful image represents a potential danger to the ecosystem!

   Thank you for showing this to us. With all your photos of this aquatic life, we learn, become aware and have the impression that we have travelled to Monterrey and visited the aquarium in person.

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2. 

   jurvetson

   Mar 21, 2006 at 5:57 pm

   merci!

   The algal blooms in the Baltic Sea are quite a sight:

   

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3. 

   bitmapr

   Mar 21, 2006 at 6:20 pm

   and then there is the "milpitas: armpit of the bay area" phenomenon, where the wild algae growth in the summer, fuelled by overfertilized suburban gardens, causes a mighty stink for a few weeks at the start of fall as they die off…

   on the biomass issue, you seem like the person that might know the answer to a question i posed in y! answers a while back…

   which single species on earth accounts for the highest biomass?

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4. 

   !MimosaMicheMichelle!

   Mar 21, 2006 at 6:24 pm

   Beautiful indeed!

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5. 

   Judy B – The Travelling Eye

   Mar 21, 2006 at 6:32 pm

   Good photo, effective contrast. As a board member of the Vancouver Aquarium, I’m familiar with this problem — you’ve summarized it well.

   http://www.vanaqua.org/home/

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6. 

   jurvetson

   Mar 21, 2006 at 6:55 pm

   bitmapr: I don’t think we don’t know at the species level yet, as there is much sequencing and classification work left to be done. Some single cell microorganism will likely be the winner….

   At a higher level of categorization, my vote would be for the archaea, with more biomass than plants and animals combined.

   “There are about 5*10^30 microbes on Earth. The Archaea alone outweigh all plants and animals… One milliliter of sea water has 1 million bacteria and 10 million viruses.” (Venter quote from my blog)

   Just think…. The bulk of living matter on the planet was not known to exist just 30 years ago!

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7. 

   angry shock

   Mar 21, 2006 at 7:06 pm

   As well I hadn´t been born 30 years ago…

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8. 

   Sam and Ian

   Mar 21, 2006 at 7:16 pm

   A beautiful photo.
   Are these jellyfish blooms a problem in themselves or are they natures way of dealing with the problem of algal & plankton blooms.

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9. 

   jurvetson

   Mar 21, 2006 at 7:18 pm

   Well… the Mola should be happy, as they love to eat these low-calorie jelly snacks…
   

   Alieness: Good point. We shouldn’t forget your people. Was the question for earth or Earth? |-)

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10. 

    angry shock

    Mar 21, 2006 at 7:51 pm

    0-) thx!

    re earth or Earth: Both, but keep it secret.

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11. 

    bitmapr

    Mar 21, 2006 at 7:55 pm

    thanks jurvetson

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12. 

    boring fact

    Mar 22, 2006 at 12:10 am

    This is just so beautiful. Forgetting the scary science of it for one moment, I imagine how it would feel to swim in and amongst them, feeling the pulsing as they move through the water seemingly weightless. A jelly ballet

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13. 

    !MimosaMicheMichelle!

    Mar 22, 2006 at 12:33 am

    Ditto!

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14. 

    pfly

    Mar 22, 2006 at 3:45 am

    Those mola are WEIRD. I grew up on the shores of Lake Erie, which makes Monterrey Bay look pristine. And jellyfish are cool. But if they are being weed-like — overwhelming an ecosystem — that sucks.

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15. 

    Cheryl Hellcat

    Mar 22, 2006 at 7:39 am

    So cool…..

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16. 

    Jeff Clow

    Mar 22, 2006 at 10:11 pm

    This is an excellent piece of photo work – my compliments.

    (Found via Flickr’s Explore/Interestingness)

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17. 

    Cocoabiscuit

    Mar 23, 2006 at 2:01 am

    Beautiful photo, nicely done

    Reply