Pallavi Rallapalli- November 27, 2017

The Critical Analysis of First observation of the freshwater jellyfish Craspedacusta sowerbii

Lankester, 1880 in Ireland with unusually high water temperatures

Summary:

This article focused primarily on the idea that Craspedacusta sowerbii, a species

of jellyfish, has spread to various regions. This animal is thought to be native to South America.

It has spread around the world as civilization has become more and more globalized, to the point

where it now inhabits a global habitat, meaning that it is found in most every continent on earth,

except Antarctica. In this study, the scientists focused on how and why Craspedacusta sowerbii

spread in and around Ireland. Ireland is typically too cold for this species, making it unusual as to

how this species of jellyfish is living there. They believe that this is due to the idea that in 2013,

Ireland experienced a warm summer, allowing for the migration of these jellyfish to colonize the

rivers and lakes in Ireland. They knew that Craspedacusta sowerbii has both a polyp and a

medusa stage, but the polyp state is quite small, and none were observed in their experiment. The

medusa stage is easier to see, and all that were observed were female. The scientists picked 5

locations in which the medusae were reported to begin their experiment. They collected data on

how many medusae were present, at which depth of water, and water temperature. They found

the most medusa in areas where the water was relatively calm as opposed to marine or brackish,

confirming the idea that this is a freshwater jellyfish. From prior studies and data, the water in

Irish rivers in 2013 was significantly warmer than in 2000 suggesting that the jellyfish which

were in these rivers could survive and reproduce. They found that increased water temperatures,

and therefore global warming, could have been a factor into the spread of Craspedacusta

sowerbii.
Pallavi Rallapalli- November 27, 2017

Overall, this article explored why Craspedacusta sowerbii has spread around the world

from its native habitat, showing that the rise in overall global temperatures creates invasive

species. Craspedacusta sowerbii is native to South America, and because of a rising trend in

global temperatures, is now found on most every continent on earth. This constant rise in global

temperatures, will cause more species to invade non-native habitats, and disrupt the balance of

ecosystems.

General Opinions:

This paper looks at several issues facing the global environment today. The

Craspedacusta sowerbii jellyfish is thought to have originated in China, but is now found on

every continent in the world except for Antarctica. While this may not seem like a problem, this

article supports the idea that global warming is the cause of the spread of the jellyfish. These

jellyfish are being found further and further north, meaning that the water in those areas is

becoming warmer and more suitable for Craspedacusta sowerbii to become an invasive species.

In order to, test this, the scientists set up study sights in various freshwater lakes in Ireland.

These study sites were in places where the jellyfish would normally not have found a suitable

environment to live. With all the study sites, the researchers should have also used some places

where they know that these jellyfish would be present. This would give the experiment and the

data more backing because there would have been more areas that were controlled for in the

experiment.

Introduction:

This article stated that the Craspedacusta sowerbii may have originated in South America

or in China. While it is difficult to determine the origin of an invasive species, the scientists

should have been clearer as to what their thinking was, meaning that they needed to make a clear
Pallavi Rallapalli- November 27, 2017

claim as to where the Craspedacusta sowerbii first originated. This would allow for the scientists

to speculate when the species became invasive. If this species originated in South America, there

would be more to explore regarding how the jellyfish was transported across oceans, but if the

species originated in China, the scientists would need a way for the species to cross entire

landmasses. The scientists also did not mention why they chose a particularly warm summer for

when the conducted their experiment. They could have articulated this better within the paper.

Methods:

The methods that were used in the paper were valid and detailed. They recorded the

temperature of the water each day the scientists measured the amount of jellyfish present in their

study sights. They knew that the jellyfish had both a polyp and a medusae stage within their

lifecycle. The polyps of Craspedacusta sowerbii are microscopic, and were collected by scraping

the hard surfaces in the Irish lakes. This method may have helped the scientists to find the polyps

of Craspedacusta sowerbii, but there are many species of freshwater jellyfish. This means that

the polyps collected could have come from many different freshwater cnidarians, and the paper

could have done a better job explaining how the samples collected were analyzed to determine if

Craspedacusta sowerbii polyps were collected.

Results:

The results indicate that the Craspedacusta sowerbii jellyfish was found downstream in

most of the study sites. Earlier in the article, they stated that the jellyfish were typically only

spotted in standing or slow- moving water. These types of habitats are typically found more

upstream from the ocean or brackish water. The scientists could have articulated this better, and

said what they meant by the jellyfish being found downstream.

Discussion:
Pallavi Rallapalli- November 27, 2017

During the discussion, the scientists made the point that Craspedacusta sowerbii was

typically found in geographically isolated areas. They also made the point that this jellyfish is an

invasive species in many ecosystems, but they did not mention why they focused on certain

rivers, and lakes as opposed to others in Ireland. This would have made the paper clearer in

terms of rationale, meaning that the evidence presented would be easier to justify when having

the reason why the methods in the paper made sense.

The medusae from of Craspedacusta sowerbii was found in waters that were supposed to

be too cold for survival, indicating a general rise in the temperature of the river of lake in which

the jellyfish was found. They did not state what this means in terms of how to interpret the data

that they found, meaning that the scientists did not relate the data to a larger scheme, such a

global warming. They also did not state why the proliferation of Craspedacusta sowerbii is a

concern to general public, meaning what should be done if Craspedacusta sowerbii is an

invasive species.

Overall, this paper did a good job in presenting the results of their experiment in a clear

way, but there were no mention of how the unusually warm summer would affect not only the

jellyfish, but how those warmer temperatures are the result of something much larger taking

place across the planet.