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What the sources say

Moon JellyfishAurelia aurita

Every figure, record and mechanism on the Moon Jellyfish profile was written from a source, and this is the working table behind it: 40 claims checked word for word against these sources. The left column is what the page says. The right column is the source's own words, copied, not paraphrased; a ... marks a cut and[brackets] an insertion. Open any source and check it yourself.

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Source
01

Animal Diversity Web, University of Michigan

Aurelia aurita (moon jellyfish). Animal Diversity Web, University of Michigan.

The page saysCoastal and brackish waters of three of the four main oceans, all but the Arctic
The source saysrange includes 3 of the 4 oceans (all but the Arctic) and other saltwater localesNote: stats.habitat; coastal and brackish from the Habitat section: 'oceanic coastal waters' and Aquatic Biomes 'coastal brackish water'
The page saysPlankton, copepods, mollusks, fish eggs and smaller jellyfish
The source saysThese include plankton, copepods, mollusks, fish eggs and smaller jellyfish.Note: stats.diet
The page saysNot Evaluated
The source saysThey have not been evaluated by the IUCN Red List.Note: stats.conservationStatus. GBIF's Red List copy holds no category for Aurelia aurita and the prefetch found no assessment DOI, so no IUCN reference is cited.
The page saysThe IUCN Red List has not evaluated the species.
The source saysThey have not been evaluated by the IUCN Red List.Note: Same as stats line.
The page saysThe bell is see-through and 10 to 35 cm across
The source saysThey have transparent outer bells that range in diameter from 10 to 35 cm.
The page saysShort tentacles, 1 to 5 cm long, fringe the edge.
The source saysSmall tentacles, 1 to 5 cm long, radiate from the bells of moon jellies, out to their sides.
The page saysFour oral arms hang below it, and they carry stinging cells called nematocysts.
The source saysRadiating from below the bell of moon jellies are four oral arms which contain stinging cells, or nematocysts
The page saysInside the bell sits a second dome with blue veins running through it, shaped like horseshoe rings: those are its gonads, the reproductive organs.
The source saysWithin the outer bell is another dome which has blue veins running through it; these veins are their gonads, which resemble horseshoe rings.
The page saysMoon jellies are carnivores known to eat most creatures small enough to get tangled on the bell or tentacles
The source saysAs carnivorous organisms, moon jellies are known to feed on most organisms small enough to become entangled on their bells or in their tentacles.
The page saysplankton, copepods (tiny shrimp-like crustaceans), mollusks, fish eggs and smaller jellyfish.
The source saysfeed on most organisms small enough to become entangled on their bells or in their tentacles. These include plankton, copepods, mollusks, fish eggs and smaller jellyfish.
The page saysThe oral arms then move the catch toward the stomach under the bell.
The source saysmoon jellies uses their oral arms to move their prey towards their stomachs, located under the their bells
The page saysIt does sting people. Animal Diversity Web lists stings to swimmers among the ways it affects tourism.
The source saysMoon jellies also affect tourism by stinging humans that are swimming.
The page saysFertilized eggs become larvae called planulae, which spend 10 days on average swimming with tiny hairs called cilia before they attach to a hard surface and turn into polyps.
The source saysFertilized eggs, called planulae, spend 10 days on average swimming around using small cilia before finding and attaching themselves to hard surfaces, becoming polyps.
The page saysA polyp stays fixed in place and buds off a number of disc-shaped segments.
The source saysMoon jellies begin their lives as free floating planulae, which then morph into polyps – small sedentary organisms. Moon jelly polyps go through budding and create a number of disk-shaped segments.
The page saysEach disc breaks free as a floating ephyra, which grows into a young medusa.
The source saysThese disk segments detach and enter a free-floating stage, where they are called ephyrae. These ephyrae then develop into immature, mobile medusae
The page saysUnder suitable conditions the climb from ephyra to mature adult takes 4 to 6 months
The source saysUnder suitable conditions, this process takes 4 to 6 months.
The page sayssexual maturity arrives somewhere between 4 and 12 months
The source saysRange age at sexual or reproductive maturity (female) 4 to 12 months
The page saysMoon jellyfish live in coastal waters of three of the four main oceans, all but the Arctic, and they can handle brackish water
The source saysrange includes 3 of the 4 oceans (all but the Arctic)Note: brackish: Aquatic Biomes list 'coastal' and 'brackish water'; 'These jellies can live in waters with a salt content as low as 0.6%.'
The page saysIts bell spans 10 to 35 centimeters (about 4 to 14 inches)
The source saysRange length 10 to 35 cm 3.94 to 13.78 inNote: inches are a unit conversion of 10 to 35 cm (3.9 to 13.8).
The page saysthe small tentacles around the rim reach just 1 to 5 centimeters.
The source saysSmall tentacles, 1 to 5 cm long

Source
02

Gemmell et al. 2013

Gemmell et al. (2013). Passive energy recapture in jellyfish contributes to propulsive advantage over other metazoans. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

The page saysranks among the most energy-efficient swimmers on the planet
The source saysone of the most energetically efficient propulsors on the planet
The page saysRecycles energy from its own swimming stroke to travel 30% further with every pulse
The source sayspassive energy recapture, which is exploited to allow them to travel 30% further each swimming cycleNote: stats.superpower
The page saysA vortex ring of spinning water underneath it creates positive pressure, extra thrust the jellyfish gets passively.
The source sayspassive energy recapture ... this extra thrust results from positive pressure created by a vortex ring underneath the bell during the refilling phase of swimming
The page saysit travels 30% further each swimming cycle, which cuts the energy its swimming muscles need
The source saystravel 30% further each swimming cycle, thereby reducing metabolic energy demand by swimming muscles
The page saysthe moon jellyfish has a cost of transport lower than other animals', which the researchers say makes it one of the most energetically efficient swimmers on the planet
The source saysthe jellyfish (Aurelia aurita) is one of the most energetically efficient propulsors on the planet, exhibiting a cost of transport (joules per kilogram per meter) lower than other metazoans
The page saysWhen the bell refills, the ring of spinning water beneath it pushes with positive pressure, and that extra thrust carries the jellyfish 30% further per swimming cycle.
The source saystravel 30% further each swimming cycle ... positive pressure created by a vortex ring underneath the bell during the refilling phase of swimming
The page saysThe researchers estimated that this passive energy recapture improves its cost of transport by 48%.
The source saysWe estimate that reduced metabolic demand by passive energy recapture improves the cost of transport by 48%
The page saysa vortex ring of spinning water beneath it adds thrust passively
The source sayspassive energy recapture ... this extra thrust results from positive pressure created by a vortex ring underneath the bell during the refilling phase of swimmingNote: vibe.reason
The page saysit travels 30% further each swimming cycle
The source saystravel 30% further each swimming cycle, thereby reducing metabolic energy demand by swimming musclesNote: vibe.reason

Source
03

Dabiri et al. 2005

Dabiri et al. (2005). Flow patterns generated by oblate medusan jellyfish: field measurements and laboratory analyses. Journal of Experimental Biology.

The page saysA moon jellyfish swims in cycles: a power stroke, then a recovery stroke.
The source saysThe flow created during each propulsive cycle consists of a toroidal starting vortex formed during the power swimming stroke, followed by a stopping vortex of opposite rotational sense generated during the recovery stroke.
The page saysDye tests on wild jellies showed a second payoff.
The source sayswe employed dye visualization techniques on scyphomedusae (Aurelia aurita) observed swimming in their natural marine habitat
The page saysThe swirls from each cycle merge and send water both toward the feeding surfaces under the bell and downstream.
The source saysThese two vortices merge in a laterally oriented vortex superstructure that induces flow both toward the subumbrellar feeding surfaces and downstream.

Source
04

Lee et al. 2011

Lee et al. (2011). Scyphozoan jellyfish venom metalloproteinases and their role in the cytotoxicity. Toxicon.

The page saysIn a lab comparison of four jellyfish venoms, moon jellyfish venom damaged cultured cells less than two of its relatives' venoms did and more than the third.
The source saysThe relative cytotoxic potency was C. nozakii > N. nomurai > A. aurita > R. esculenta.
The page saysIn a study of four jellyfish venoms on cultured cells, moon jellyfish venom was less damaging than that of Cyanea nozakii and Nemopilema nomurai, and more damaging than that of Rhopilema esculenta.
The source sayscomparatively investigated the enzymatic activities (proteases and hyaluronidases) in the venoms of four Scyphozoan jellyfish species ... The relative cytotoxic potency was C. nozakii > N. nomurai > A. aurita > R. esculenta.Note: less and more damaging restate the cytotoxic potency ranking; cultured cells are the NIH 3T3 cells.

Source
05

Lawley et al. 2021

Lawley et al. (2021). The importance of molecular characters when morphological variability hinders diagnosability: systematics of the moon jellyfish genus Aurelia (Cnidaria: Scyphozoa). PeerJ.

The page saysNot long ago scientists recognized just two moon jelly species, and one of them, Aurelia aurita, was treated as one coastal jelly found worldwide.
The source saysMore recently, only two species were recognized, Aurelia limbata Brandt, 1835 , which has a brown bell margin and is primarily from temperate regions, and a cosmopolitan nearshore inhabitant A. auritaNote: 'one' restates that A. aurita was one of the two species recognized.
The page saysA 2021 study, working mostly from genetic data, recognized 28 species in the genus
The source saysmostly based on genetic data, we recognize 28 species of AureliaNote: 2021 is the year of the lawley-2021 reference.
The page saysshowed that their body features overlap between jellies from very distant coasts
The source saysmorphological variability in Aurelia medusae overlaps across very distant geographic localities
The page saysNo. A 2021 study, working mostly from genetic data, recognized 28 species in the moon jellyfish genus Aurelia, 10 of them newly described in that paper.
The source saysmostly based on genetic data, we recognize 28 species of Aurelia , of which seven were already described, 10 are formally described hereinNote: 2021 is the year of the lawley-2021 reference.
The page saysEvery other source on this page was published before that split, under the old, broad name
The source saysa cosmopolitan nearshore inhabitant A. aurita , which included as synonyms most of the previously proposed namesNote: Scope statement. The other references are Dabiri 2005, Lee 2011, Gemmell 2013 and the ADW account (tombs 2020, 'Last updated: 2020-09-13'), all before Lawley 2021 and all naming Aurelia aurita in the broad sense.

Source
06

Kent Wildlife Trust

Moon jellyfish. Kent Wildlife Trust.

The page saysIn British seas the adult is unlikely to live past 6 months in the wild, and a little over a year in captivity.
The source saysUnlikely to live past 6 months in the wild; Little over 1 year in captivity.

How the table was made: a writer drafted the profile from these sources and logged each claim with its quote, a reviewer with nothing but this table checked every sentence said no more than its quote, and a script confirmed each quote appears word for word in the source. The method is in the site'sAbout page.