Ctenophores, the comb jellies.

 

These are strange creatures, very similar to jellyfishes. They move not by jet but by giant cilias.

There are two most common species of ctenophores in the White sea - Beroe cucumis, and Bolinopsis infundibulum.

 

This is Bolinopsis infundibulum. This comb jelly belongs to the order Lobata. All speciments in this order have two bright mouth lobes. Bolinopsis eats plankton, catching small organisms with its lobes.

In the Black sea lives the very similar Mnemiopsis leidyi - the invasive species. These ctenophores can be very dangerous for plankton ecosystems. When Mnemiopsis was introduced into the Black sea, the quantity of zooplankton and fishes sinked strong.

And this is Beroe cucumis - another comb jelly which eats only other species of comb jellies!

 

 

 

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