Species Mastigias ocellatus (Modeer, 1791)

Museums

Regional Maps

• Medusa ocellata Modeer, A. 1791. Tentamen systematis medusarum stabiliendi. Nova Acta Physico-Mededica Academiae Caesareae Leopoldino-Carolinae Naturae Curiosum 8(Append. No. 6): 19–34 [27].

Generic Combinations

• Cephea ocellata (Modeer, 1791).
• Mastigias ocellata (Modeer, 1791).

Distribution

States

Northern Territory, Queensland

Extra Distribution Information

Reported from QLD and NT by Kramp (1965).

Ecological Descriptors

Marine, planktonic.

Diagnosis

Mastigias with the body about 100 (up to 190) mm wide, exumbrella with nematocyst warts in polygonal pattern, and with ' eye-spots ', consisting of white circles with brown centre and brown rim; gelatinous substance firm; about 12 rounded velar lappets in each octant; arm-disk with few filaments; mouth-arms shorter than disk radius, broad, with large and firm lateral branches and with clubs and filaments, terminal appendage triangular in cross-section; 15-20
canal-roots in each octant; perradial rhopalar canals bottle-shaped, without anastomoses.

Diagnosis References

Kramp, P.L. 1961. Synopsis of the medusae of the world. Journal of the Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom 40: 1-469 [358]

Notes

Stiasny (1922: 538) studied the type specimen of Haeckel's Versura palmata, concluding that it is identical to M. ocellatus.

General References

Kramp, P.L. 1965. Some medusae (mainly Scyphomedusae) from Australian coastal waters. Transactions of the Royal Society of South Australia 89: 257–278, pl. 1–3 (distribution)

Stiasny, G. 1922. Papers from Dr. Th. Mortensen's Pacific Expedition 1914-1916. XII. Die Scyphomedusen-sammlung von Dr. Th. Mortensen nebst anderen medusen aus dem Zoologischen Museum der Universität in Kobenhagen. Videnskabelige Meddelelser fra Dansk Naturhistorisk Forening i Kjøbenhavn 73: 513–558, 14 text-figs [538]

History of changes