Sri Lankan study identifies new jellyfish, sparking interest in the species

Like floating mushrooms with thin and transparent tentacles, jellyfish would have been drifting in the oceanic currents for several millions of years and even predating the dinosaurs’ reign on Earth. Although accidental stings and mass beaching draws some attention, no systematic study has been conducted on the jellyfish in Sri Lanka for well over a century. It is this scientific lacuna that a new study by the Wayamba University of Sri Lanka sought to address. The study also introduced at least 10 species that were not previously known to inhabit Sri Lankan waters.

The research began in 2017 and was code-named “Waya-jel-Survey” as it was based out of  Wayamba University in Sri Lanka’s North Western province. Its best outcome was the discovery of a jellyfish species new to science. The researchers named it Carybdea wayamba, in honor of the university. It’s the first species described by the university, and researchers also say that C. wayamba is the first member of the Carybdea genus described from specimens collected from the North Indian Ocean.

“Studying jellyfish is challenging, as there are only a few baseline surveys or proper identification guides,” says Krishan Karunarathne, a PhD student who initiated the Waya-jel-Survey together with his supervisor at the university, Dileepa de Croos through funding from the National Science Foundation (NSF). Karunarathne used several methods to collect the specimen and has gone to the sea on board fishing vessels to collect specimens entangled in nets. They also dragged a cone-shaped net on the water surface to collect the specimens.