Added: Nov 4, 2009

From: AsiaTravelTV

Duration: 3:35

Download Free $120 cash vouchers at http://www.asiatravel.com/cv/video/index.html to offset payment at http://www.asiatravel.com For Bookings: http://www.asiatravel.com/ For More Video: http://book.asiatravel.com/video-travel_destinations.aspx Jellyfish Lake (Ongeim'l Tketau is the Palauan name) is a marine lake located on Eil Malk island in Palau. Eil Malk is part of the Rock Islands, a group of small, rocky, mostly uninhabited islands in Palau's Southern Lagoon, between Koror and Peleliu. There are about 70 other marine lakes located throughout the Rock Islands. Jellyfish Lake is one of Palau's most famous dive (snorkeling only) sites. It is notable for the millions of golden jellyfish which migrate across its surface daily. Jellyfish Lake is connected to the ocean through fissures and tunnels. However the lake is sufficiently isolated and the conditions are different enough that the diversity of species in the lake is greatly reduced from the nearby lagoon. The golden jellyfish and possibly other species in the lake have evolved to be substantially different from their close relatives living in the nearby lagoons. Two species of scyphozoan jellyfish live in Jellyfish Lake, moon jellyfish (Aurelia sp.) and the golden jellyfish (Mastigias sp.). [edit] Golden jellyfish The golden jellyfish are most closely related to the spotted jellyfish (Mastigias papua) that inhabit the nearby lagoons[5]. They are similar to the spotted jellyfish in that they derive part of their nutrition from symbiotic algae (Zooxanthella) that live in their tissues and part of their nutrition from captured zooplankton[6]. However, the golden jellyfish are morphologically, physiologically and behaviorally distinct from the spotted jellyfish. They are easily distinguished from the spotted jellyfish by the almost complete loss of spots on the exumbrella and the almost complete loss of their clubs, an appendage attached to the oral arms[7]. Marine biologist, Michael Dawson proposed that the golden jellyfish that inhabit Jellyfish Lake be classified as a subspecies (Mastigias cf. papua etpisoni) of the spotted jellyfish living in the nearby lagoons. The species identification is uncertain (denoted by cf. in the name) because the Mastigias papua local to Palauan lagoons may be only one of several cryptic species that make up the M. papua group and in the future the M. papua local to Palau may be identified as a separate species from other M. papua. He also proposed that the jellyfish living in four other Palauan marine lakes were distinctive enough to deserve recognition as unique subspecies[7]. [edit] Moon jellyfish The moon jellyfish were identified as Aurelia aurita by Hamner[8]. However, since the release of that report in 1981, genetic testing has been done on specimens of Aurelia collected from locations throughout the world. The results of that testing indicate in addition to the three named species of Aurelia there are at least six other cryptic species in the Aurelia genus. Three of the cryptic species identified were from Palau. One of these cryptic species is common to four of Palau's marine lakes with jellyfish populations including Jellyfish Lake[9]. Hence, the most accurate designation for the moon jellyfish in Jellyfish Lake (as of February 2001) is Aurelia sp. Despite the close proximity of Palau's moon jellyfish cryptic species, Dawson and Jacobs stated that the molecular data suggested that they had not interbred for millions of years[9]. Info Taken from Wikipedia.com Credits to Wikipedia.com http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jellyfish_Lake Main

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