Making headlines less than a year ago, this pink meanie jellyfish Drymonema larsoni, was discovered by Dauphin Island Sea Lab scientist Dr. Keith Bayha, and Dr. Michael Dawson at the University of California Merced,  to represent not only a new species of jellyfish, but also a new family, based on DNA evidence and morphological analyses. 

The discovery was made from new studies employing molecular phylogenetic techniques revealing many cryptic species (that is, species whose appearance are so similar that subtle differences were hidden from the human eye) living in slightly different places, suggesting greater specialization and local adaptation.

“It’s rare that something like this could escape the notice of scientific research for so long.  That it did is partially due to Drymonema’s extreme rarity almost everywhere in the world, except the northern Gulf of Mexico, where it bloomed in 2000.” stated Dr. Bayha in an interview.

Particularly exciting for the Aquarium, this species has not been seen off the South Carolina coast since 1885! The pink meanie, though a beautiful jellie, will not be seen on display at the Aquarium (this particular jelly would outgrow a tank at the Aquarium in a short period). It has instead been sent on to Dr. Bayha so he can continue his ground breaking research on this species.