A new pygmy species of box jellyfish (Cubozoa: Chirodropida) from sub-tropical Australia

Lisa-ann Gershwin

doi:10.15468/bdr9bd

A new pygmy species of box jellyfish (Cubozoa: Chirodropida) from sub-tropical Australia

Citation

Gershwin L (2020). A new pygmy species of box jellyfish (Cubozoa: Chirodropida) from sub-tropical Australia. CSIRO National Collections and Marine Infrastructure (NCMI) Information and Data Centre (IDC). Occurrence dataset https://doi.org/10.15468/bdr9bd accessed via GBIF.org on 2020-11-27.

Description

Tropical box jellyfish include some of the world’s most venomous animals, leading researchers and the media to wonder whether changes in climate may drive these species into sub-tropical waters. The discovery, therefore, of small box jellyfish in the waterways of the Gold Coast and Sunshine Coast of south-east Queensland raised concern. This pygmy species proved to be new to science, separated from other species in the genus Chiropsella by its very small size; its semi-circular phacellae; very shallow, coalesced gastric saccules; its peculiar, long pedalia where the ‘palm’ is greatly reduced and the nonopposing ‘fingers’ branch off together at the same level; and a knee-like bend of the pedalial canal. The residential canal/ river habitat of this species of chirodropid raises the question of whether this area is also suitable for habitation by the larger, more virulent chirodropids such as the so-called ‘deadly box jellyfish’, Chironex fleckeri. This new species, Chiropsella saxoni sp. nov., brings the total number of chirodropid species described from Australian waters to five.

Taxonomic Coverages

Chiropsella saxoni
rank: species

Geographic Coverages

Queensland and New South Wales coasts

Bibliographic Citations

Gershwin, Lisa-Ann,Ekins, Merrick (2015) A new pygmy species of box jellyfish (Cubozoa: Chirodropida) from sub-tropical Australia. Marine Biodiversity Records 8 pp-. - doi:10.1017/S175526721500086X

Contacts

Lisa-ann Gershwin
originator
position: Investigator
CSIRO Oceans and Atmosphere
Castray Esplanade
7000
Tasmania
AU

Lisa-ann Gershwin
metadata author
position: Investigator
CSIRO Oceans and Atmosphere
Castray Esplanade
7000
Tasmania
AU

Dave Watts
publisher
position: OBIS Australia Data Manager
CSIRO NCMI
Hobart
Tasmania
AU
email: obisau@csiro.au
homepage: http://www.obis.org.au

Lisa-ann Gershwin
administrative point of contact
position: Investigator
CSIRO Oceans and Atmosphere
Castray Esplanade
7000
Tasmania
AU

Merrick Ekins
administrative point of contact
Queensland Museum
Brisbane
Queensland
AU