Template:Short description Template:Automatic taxobox Box jellyfish (class Cubozoa) are cnidarian invertebrates distinguished by their box-like (i.e., cube-shaped) body.<ref>Template:OED</ref> Some species of box jellyfish produce potent venom delivered by contact with their tentacles. Stings from some species, including Chironex fleckeri, Carukia barnesi, Malo kingi, and a few others, are extremely painful and often fatal to humans.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
Taxonomy and systematicsEdit
Historically, cubozoans were classified as an order of Scyphozoa until 1973, when they were put in their own class due to their unique biological cycle (lack of strobilation) and morphology.<ref name="Avian2021">Template:Cite book</ref>
At least 51 species of box jellyfish were known as of 2018.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> These are grouped into two orders and eight families.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> A few new species have since been described, and it is likely that additional undescribed species remain.<ref name="Cyamaguchii" /><ref name="Cbranchi" /><ref name="Cbart" />
Cubozoa represents the smallest cnidarian class with approximately 50 species.<ref>Template:Cite report</ref>Template:Better source needed
Class Cubzoa
- Order Carybdeida
- Family Alatinidae
- Family Carukiidae
- Family Carybdeidae
- Family Tamoyidae
- Family Tripedaliidae
- Order Chirodropida
- Family Chirodropidae
- Family Chiropsalmidae
- Family Chiropsellidae
DescriptionEdit
The medusa form of a box jellyfish has a squarish, box-like bell, from which its name is derived. From each of the four lower corners of this hangs a short pedalium or stalk which bears one or more long, slender, hollow tentacles. The rim of the bell is folded inwards to form a shelf known as a velarium which restricts the bell's aperture and creates a powerful jet when the bell pulsates.<ref name=Ruppert>Template:Cite book</ref> As a result, box jellyfish can move more rapidly than other jellyfish; speeds of up to 1.5 metres per second have been recorded.<ref name=IZ>Template:Cite book</ref>
In the center of the underside of the bell is a mobile appendage called the manubrium which somewhat resembles an elephant's trunk. At its tip is the mouth. The interior of the bell is known as the gastrovascular cavity. It is divided by four equidistant septa into a central stomach and four gastric pockets. The eight gonads are located in pairs on either side of the four septa. The margins of the septa bear bundles of small gastric filaments which house nematocysts and digestive glands and help to subdue prey. Each septum is extended into a septal funnel that opens onto the oral surface and facilitates the flow of fluid into and out of the animal.<ref name=Ruppert/>
The box jellyfish's nervous system is more developed than that of many other jellyfish. They possess a ring nerve at the base of the bell that coordinates their pulsing movements, a feature found elsewhere only in the crown jellyfish. Whereas some other jellyfish have simple pigment-cup ocelli, box jellyfish are unique in the possession of true eyes, complete with retinas, corneas and lenses.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> Their eyes are set in clusters at the ends of sensory structures called rhopalia which are connected to their ring nerve. Each rhopalium contains two image-forming lens eyes. The upper lens eye looks straight up out of the water with a field of view that matches Snell's window. In species such as Tripedalia cystophora, the upper lens eye is used to navigate to their preferred habitats at the edges of mangrove lagoons by observing the direction of the tree canopy.<ref name=":1">Template:Cite journal</ref> The lower lens eye is primarily used for object avoidance. Research has shown that the minimum visual angle for obstacles avoided by their lower lens eyes matches the half-widths of their receptive fields.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> Each rhopalium also has two pit eyes on either side of the upper lens eye which likely act as mere light meters, and two slit eyes on either side of the lower lens eye which are likely used to detect vertical movement.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> In total, the box jellyfish have six eyes on each of their four rhopalia, creating a total of 24 eyes. The rhopalia also feature a heavy crystal-like structure called a statolith, which, due to the flexibility of the rhopalia, keep the eyes oriented vertically regardless of the orientation of the bell.<ref name=":1" />
Box jellyfish also display complex, probably visually-guided behaviors such as obstacle avoidance and fast directional swimming.<ref name="ncbi.nlm.nih.gov">Template:Cite journal</ref> Research indicates that, owing to the number of rhopalial nerve cells and their overall arrangement, visual processing and integration at least partly happen within the rhopalia of box jellyfish.<ref name="ncbi.nlm.nih.gov"/> The complex nervous system supports a relatively advanced sensory system compared to other jellyfish, and box jellyfish have been described as having an active, fish-like behavior.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref>
Depending on species, a fully grown box jellyfish can measure up to Template:Convert along each box side (Template:Convert in diameter), and the tentacles can grow up to Template:Convert in length. Its weight can reach Template:Convert.<ref name="National Geographic Online">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> However, the thumbnail-sized Irukandji is a box jellyfish, and lethal despite its small size. There are about 15 tentacles on each corner. Each tentacle has about 500,000 cnidocytes, containing nematocysts, a harpoon-shaped microscopic mechanism that injects venom into the victim.<ref name="1996-Williamson">Template:Cite bookTemplate:Page needed</ref> Many different kinds of nematocysts are found in cubozoans.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref>
DistributionEdit
Although the notoriously dangerous species of box jellyfish are largely restricted to the tropical Indo-Pacific region, various species of box jellyfish can be found widely in tropical and subtropical oceans (between 42° N and 42 °S),<ref name="Avian2021" /> including the Atlantic Ocean and the east Pacific Ocean, with species as far north as California (Carybdea confusa), the Mediterranean Sea (Carybdea marsupialis)<ref name="Pohl2017">Template:Cite journal</ref> and Japan (such as Chironex yamaguchii),<ref name="Cyamaguchii">Template:Cite journal</ref> and as far south as South Africa (such as Carybdea branchi)<ref name="Cbranchi">Template:Cite journal</ref> and New Zealand (such as Copula sivickisi).<ref>Template:Cite bookTemplate:Page needed</ref> Though box jellies are known to inhabit the Indo-Pacific region, there is very little collected data or studies proving this. It was only in 2014, that the first ever box jelly sightings (Tripedalia cystophora) were officially published in Australia, Thailand and the Indian Ocean.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> There are three known species in Hawaiian waters, all from the genus Carybdea: C. alata, C. rastoni, and C. sivickisi.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Within these tropical and subtropical environments, box jellyfish tend to reside closer to shore. They have been spotted in near-shore habitats such as mangroves, coral reefs, kelp forests, and sandy beaches.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref>
Recently, in 2023, a new genus and species of box jellyfish was discovered in the Indo-Pacific region, specifically the Gulf of Thailand. Discovered and named after scientist Lisa-ann Gershwin, this new species of box jellyfish, Gershwinia thailandensis, is a member of the Carukiidae family. Gershwinia thailandensis is described as its own new species as it has sensory structures with specialized horns and lacks a common digestive system among box jelly, the stomach gastric phaecellae.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> Due to this and other observations, structural and biological, Gershwinia thailandensis was accepted as a new species of box jellyfish.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref>
DetectionEdit
Cubozoans are widely distributed throughout tropical and subtropical regions, yet the detection of these organisms can be quite difficult and costly due to a high amount of variation in their occurrence and abundance, their translucent body, two different life stages (medusa and polyp), and vast amounts of size variability within the different species in the class Cubozoa.<ref name=":12">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
Understanding the ecological distribution of cubozoans can be difficult work, and some of the costly methods like visual observations, a variety of different nets, light attraction techniques, and most recently the use of drones have had some levels of success in locating and tracking different species of cubozoa, but are limited by both anthropogenic and environmental factors.<ref name=":2">Template:Cite journal</ref>
A new form of detection, environmental DNA (eDNA), has been developed and employed to help aid in the analysis of the populations of box jellyfish which can be implemented to mitigate the effects that box jellyfish have on coastal anthropogenic activities.<ref name=":12" /><ref name=":3">Template:Cite journal</ref> This relatively easy and cost-effective method utilizes extra-organismal genetic material that can be found in the water column via shedding throughout the lifespan of an organism.<ref name=":2" /><ref name=":3" />
This process for identifying box jellyfish using the eDNA technique involves collecting a water sample and filtering the sample through a cellulose nitrate membrane filter to extract any genetic material from the water sample.<ref name=":2" /> Once the DNA is extracted, it is analyzed for species-specific matches to see if the eDNA sequences sampled correlate with existing DNA sequences for box jellyfish.<ref name=":2" /> Given the results, the presence or absence of the box jellyfish can be indicated through the matching of genetic material.<ref name=":12" /> If a match is found, then the box jellyfish was present in the area.<ref name=":3" /> The utilization of eDNA can provide a cost-effective and efficient way to monitor populations of box jellyfish in both medusa and polyp life stages, to then use the data to help understand more about their ecology and limit the effects on coastal anthropogenic activities.<ref name=":12" />
EcologyEdit
Age and growthEdit
It has been found that the statoliths, which are composed of calcium sulfate hemihydrate, exhibit clear sequential incremental layers, thought to be laid down on a daily basis. This has enabled researchers to estimate growth rates, ages, and age to maturity. Chironex fleckeri, for example, increases its inter-pedalia distance (IPD) by Template:Convert per day, reaching an IPD of Template:Convert when 45 to 50 days old. The maximum age of any individual examined was 88 days by which time it had grown to an IPD of Template:Convert.<ref name="Pitt">Template:Cite book</ref> In the wild, the box jellyfish will live up to 3 months, but can survive up to seven or eight months in a science lab tank.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
BehaviorEdit
The box jellyfish actively hunts its prey (small fish), rather than drifting as do true jellyfish. They are strong swimmers, capable of achieving speeds of up to 1.5 to 2 metres per second or about Template:Convert.<ref name="National Geographic Online"/> and rapidly turning up to 180° in a few bell contractions.<ref name="Avian2021"/> Some species are capable of avoiding obstacles.<ref name="Avian2021"/>
The majority of box jellyfishes feed by extending their tentacles and accelerating for a short time upwards, then turn upside-down and stop pulsating. Then the jellyfish slowly sinks, until prey finds itself entangled by tentacles. At this point the pedalia fold and bring the prey to the oral opening.<ref name="Avian2021"/>
The venom of cubozoans is distinct from that of scyphozoans, and is used to catch prey (small fish and invertebrates, including prawns and bait fish) and for defence from predators, which include the butterfish, batfish, rabbitfish, crabs (blue swimmer crab) and various species of turtle including the hawksbill sea turtle and flatback sea turtle. It seems that sea turtles are unaffected by the stings because they seem to relish box jellyfish.<ref name="National Geographic Online"/>
ReproductionEdit
Cubozoans usually have an annual life cycle. Box jellyfish reach sexual maturity when their bell diameter reaches 5 millimeters.<ref name=":02">Template:Cite journal</ref> Chirodropida reproduces by external fertilization. Carybdeida instead reproduces by internal fertilization and is ovoviviparous; sperm is transferred by spermatozeugmata, a type of spermatophore.<ref name="Avian20212">Template:Cite book</ref> Hours after the fertilization, the female releases an embryo strand that contains its own nematocytes; both euryteles and isorhizas.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> Cubozoas are the only class of cnidarian that contains species that perform the “wedding dance” to transfer the spermatophores from the male into the females, including the Carybdea sivickisi species.<ref name=":02" />
It is previously believed that medusa species only reproduce once in their life before dying a few weeks later, a semelparity lifestyle.<ref name=":02" /> Alternatively, in July 2023, the box jelly species Chiropsalmus quadrumanus, were found to potentially have iteroparous reproduction, meaning they reproduce multiple times in their life. Oogenesis appears to happen numerous times as oocytes are discovered in four stages; pre-vitellogenic, early vitellogenic, mid vitellogenic, and late vitellogenic.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> Continuous research needs to be conducted to determine if box jellyfish are semelparity or iteroparous, or if it is species dependent.
GeneticsEdit
Box jellyfish have a mitochondrial genome that is arranged into eight linear chromosomes.<ref name=":5">Template:Citation</ref> As of 2022, only two Cubozoan species were fully sequenced, Alatina alata and Morbakka virulenta. A. alata has 66,156 genes, the largest gene count for any Medusozoan.<ref name="Santander2022">Template:Cite journal</ref> The mitochondrial genome of box jellyfish is uniquely structured into multiple linear fragments.<ref name="Avian2021"/> Each one of the eight linear chromosomes have between one and four genes including two extra genes. These two extra genes (mt-polB and orf314) encode proteins.<ref name=":5"/> There are only a few studies that have been completed involving the research of mitochondrial gene expression in box jellyfish.<ref name=":5"/>
Danger to humansEdit
Box jellyfish have been long known for their powerful sting. The lethality of the Cubozoan venom to humans is the primary reason for its research.<ref name=":5"/> Although unspecified species of box jellyfish have been called in newspapers "the world's most venomous creature"<ref>Template:Cite newsTemplate:Cbignore</ref> and the deadliest creature in the sea,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> only a few species in the class have been confirmed to be involved in human deaths; some species are not harmful to humans, possibly delivering a sting that is no more than painful.<ref name=Cbart>Template:Cite journal</ref> When the venom of the box jellyfish was sequenced, it was found that more than 170 toxin proteins were identified.<ref name=":5" /> The high quantity of toxin proteins that the box jellyfish possess is the reason they are known to be so dangerous. Stings from the box jellyfish can lead to skin irritation, cardiotoxicity, and can even be fatal.<ref name=":5"/>
AustraliaEdit
Hugo Flecker, who worked on various venomous animal species and poisonous plants, was concerned at the unexplained deaths of swimmers. He identified the cause as the species of box jellyfish later named Chironex fleckeri. In 1945, he described another jellyfish envenoming which he named the "Irukandji Syndrome", later identified as caused by the box jellyfish species Carukia barnesi.<ref name=flecker>Template:Cite book</ref>
In Australia, fatalities are most often caused by the largest species of this class of jellyfish, Chironex fleckeri, one of the world's most venomous creatures.<ref name=flecker/> After severe Chironex fleckeri stings, cardiac arrest can occur quickly, within just two minutes.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> C. fleckeri has caused at least 79 deaths since the first report in 1883,<ref name=NTG>Template:Cite press release</ref><ref name=":0">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> but even in this species most encounters appear to result only in mild envenoming.<ref name=Daubert>Template:Cite journal</ref> While most recent deaths in Australia have been in children, including a 14-year old who died in February 2022,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> which is linked to their smaller body mass,<ref name=NTG/> in February 2021, a 17-year-old boy died about 10 days after being stung while swimming at a beach on Queensland's western Cape York.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> The previous fatality was in 2007.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
At least two deaths in Australia have been attributed to the thumbnail-sized Irukandji box jellyfish.<ref name="MJA2002-fenner">Template:Cite journal</ref><ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> People stung by these may suffer severe physical and psychological symptoms, known as Irukandji syndrome.<ref name="MJA1998-Little">Template:Cite journal</ref> Nevertheless, most victims do survive, and out of 62 people treated for Irukandji envenomation in Australia in 1996, almost half could be discharged home with few or no symptoms after 6 hours, and only two remained hospitalized approximately a day after they were stung.<ref name="MJA1998-Little"/>
Preventative measures in Australia include nets deployed on beaches to keep jellyfish out, and jugs of vinegar placed along swimming beaches to be used for rapid first aid.<ref name=Daubert/>
Hawaii: research and dangersEdit
Researchers at the University of Hawaii's Department of Tropical Medicine found the venom causes cells to become porous enough to allow potassium leakage, causing hyperkalemia, which can lead to cardiovascular collapse and death as quickly as within 2 to 5 minutes.
In Hawaii, box jellyfish numbers peak approximately seven to ten days after a full moon, when they come near the shore to spawn. Sometimes, the influx is so severe that lifeguards have closed infested beaches, such as Hanauma Bay, until the numbers subside.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
Malaysia, Philippines, Japan, Thailand, and TexasEdit
In parts of the Malay Archipelago, the number of lethal cases is far higher than in Australia. In the Philippines, an estimated 20–40 people die annually from Chirodropid stings, probably owing to limited access to medical facilities and antivenom.<ref name=FennerWilliamson>Template:Cite journal</ref>
The recently discovered and very similar Chironex yamaguchii may be equally dangerous, as it has been implicated in several deaths in Japan.<ref name=Cyamaguchii/> It is unclear which of these species is the one usually involved in fatalities in the Malay Archipelago.<ref name=Cyamaguchii/><ref name=phd>Template:Cite bookTemplate:Page needed</ref>
Warning signs and first aid stations have been erected in Thailand following the death of a 5-year-old French boy in August 2014.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> A woman died in July 2015 after being stung off Ko Pha Ngan,<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> and another at Lamai Beach at Ko Samui on 6 October 2015.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
In 1990, a 4-year-old child died after being stung by Chiropsalmus quadrumanus at Galveston Island, Texas, on the Gulf of Mexico. Either this species or Chiropsoides buitendijki is considered the likely perpetrator of two deaths in West Malaysia.<ref name=phd/>
Protection and treatmentEdit
Protective clothingEdit
Wearing pantyhose, full body lycra suits, dive skins, or wetsuits is an effective protection against box jellyfish stings.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>Template:Unreliable source? The pantyhose were formerly thought to work because of the length of the box jellyfish's stingers (nematocysts), but it is now known to be related to the way the stinger cells work. The stinging cells on a box jellyfish's tentacles are not triggered by touch, but by chemicals found on skin, which are not present on the hose's outer surface, so the jellyfish's nematocysts do not fire.<ref name="National Geographic Online"/>
First aid for stingsEdit
Once a tentacle of the box jellyfish adheres to skin, it pumps nematocysts with venom into the skin, causing the sting and agonizing pain. Flushing with vinegar is used to deactivate undischarged nematocysts to prevent the release of additional venom. A 2014 study reported that vinegar also increased the amount of venom released from already-discharged nematocysts; however, this study has been criticized on methodological grounds.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
Vinegar is made available on Australian beaches and in other places with venomous jellyfish.<ref name=phd/>
Removal of additional tentacles is usually done with a towel or gloved hand, to prevent secondary stinging. Tentacles can still sting if separated from the bell, or after the creature is dead. Removal of tentacles may cause unfired nematocysts to come into contact with the skin and fire, resulting in a greater degree of envenomation.Template:Citation needed
Although commonly recommended in folklore and even some papers on sting treatment,<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> there is no scientific evidence that urine, ammonia, meat tenderizer, sodium bicarbonate, boric acid, lemon juice, fresh water, steroid cream, alcohol, cold packs, papaya, or hydrogen peroxide will disable further stinging, and these substances may even hasten the release of venom.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> Heat packs have been proven for moderate pain relief.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> The use of pressure immobilization bandages, methylated spirits, or vodka is generally not recommended for use on jelly stings.<ref name="MJA1980-Hartwick">Template:Cite journal</ref><ref name="Toxicon2002-Seymour">Template:Cite journal</ref><ref>Template:Cite journal</ref><ref>Template:Cite journal</ref>
Possible antidotes in humansEdit
In 2011, researchers at the University of Hawaii announced that they had developed an effective treatment against the stings of Hawaiian box jellyfish by "deconstructing" the venom contained in their tentacles.<ref>UHMedNow, "Angel Yanagihara's box jellyfish venom research leads to sting treatment" Template:Webarchive, March 4, 2011</ref> Its effectiveness was demonstrated in the PBS Nova episode "Venom: Nature's Killer", originally shown on North American television in February 2012.<ref>PBS Nova, Venom: Nature's Killer (transcript)</ref> Their research found that injected zinc gluconate prevented the disruption of red blood cells and reduced the toxic effects on the cardiac activity of research mice.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> It was later found that copper gluconate was even more effective. A cream containing copper gluconate has been produced, to be applied to inhibit the injected venom; although it is used by U.S. military divers, evidence that it is effective in humans is only anecdotal.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
In April 2019, a team of researchers at the University of Sydney announced that they had found a possible antidote to Chironex fleckeri venom that would stop pain and skin necrosis if administered within 15 minutes of being stung. The research was the result of work done with CRISPR whole genome editing in which the researchers selectively deactivated skin-cell genes until they were able to identify ATP2B1, a calcium transporting ATPase, as a host factor supporting cytotoxicity. The research showed the therapeutic use of existing drugs targeting cholesterol in mice, although the efficacy of the approach had not been demonstrated in humans.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref>