Did You Know?
- The Blue Button Jellyfish is not actually a Jellyfish (although they are related).
- These organisms will form colonies of polyps with each polyp bringing something different to the community
- The Blue Button can’t decide if they want to be a male or female…so they chose both (yes, they are hermaphrodites)
Another Misleading Name
So what in the world is this amazing looking sea creature? As mentioned, they are not actually a Jellyfish and are more closely related to other awesome sea creatures such as the Portuguese Man of War and the By-The-Wind Sailor (yes, this is the actual name of a pretty cool jelly-like animal). The Blue Button isn’t very big with an average width of 3.8 cm (1.5 inches) but they are still capable of delivering a mild irritation if they feel like stinging you. In all honesty, their sting is nothing to fear but I was trying to make the poor little Blue Button feel good about itself.
Colonies of Polyps
The colonies that these organisms form may be one of the most intriguing features of this animal. Tiny little polyps will come together creating what we know as the Blue Button, although they also come in turquoise and bright yellow. As indicated above each polyp has a different function and when they all come together you end up with an animal that has a single mouth, tentacles (giving them the jellyfish appearance) and one heck of a neat organism. Incidentally, they even have polyps that contribute different sexual organs as this Jellyfish-like animal doesn’t need a mate to procreate.
Male and Female Blue Button
That’s right, these animals have both organs so when it comes time to make babies they simply deposit both the eggs and the sperm into the water and a tiny new polyp will be born. This polyp will then go through something called metamorphosis, which basically means a change, with the end result being two new polyps with a specialized function. They will then become part of the colony and carry out their duty as required. When the time comes they will perform both mating functions and the whole process of life carries on.
