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I took this picture of an animal in the bioluminescent section of Aquarium of the Pacific in Long Beach, California, but I neglected to write down what it was. I've searched the Aquarium's web site, but it doesn't appear to have information about the individual species on exhibit. (Or else I just can't find it.) I've also looked at Wikipedia and Google Images, but can't seem to find a creature that looks like this one.

I suspected it could be a jellyfish, and the answer below confirms that. But I'd like to know what species of jellyfish it is. (Either common name or scientific name.)

enter image description here

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2 Answers 2

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That is a Jellyfish! :D

Someone else took a picture of that same Jellyfish:

http://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/aquarium-of-the-pacific-long-beach?select=36BuiiqeN7OIFbowSDkPcw

Here is a picture from an article about the exhibit's jelly fish:

enter image description here

Source: New Jellies Exhibit at Aquarium of the Pacific Explores the Mysterious Lives of These Gelatinous Sea Creatures

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  • $\begingroup$ Thanks! I'd suspected it might be a jellyfish, but I wasn't sure. I'd still like to know exactly what kind of jellyfish it is. Unfortunately, the linked article doesn't have captions on its pictures. $\endgroup$
    – user31708
    Commented Feb 15, 2016 at 1:13
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After sifting through even more images on Google Images, I think I have finally identified this as the flower hat jelly, Olindias formosa. (Wikipedia, Monterey Bay Aquarium)

The coloration looks different on those sites, but I think it's just a matter of lighting.

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    $\begingroup$ I think they probably have it under UV blacklight at the Aquarium of the Pacific. So it's probably not bioluminescence, but UV fluorescence, $\endgroup$ Commented Feb 16, 2016 at 3:31
  • $\begingroup$ Thanks for that tip! I did some further research, and this article seems to confirm your hypothesis. $\endgroup$
    – user31708
    Commented Feb 16, 2016 at 5:08

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