"Gelatinous zooplankton" refers to small, jelly-like organisms that float in the water. These organisms include creatures like jellyfish, comb jellies, and other soft-bodied animals.
Full definition
In recent years, there has been a lot of discussion about the global increase in the abundance
of gelatinous zooplankton populations.
The team saw them feeding on jellyfish and also analysed the stomachs of five previously caught specimens, all of which
contained gelatinous zooplankton and three of them contained jellyfish.
But a new analysis of animal DNA, published in April in Nature [subscription required], bestows that honor on the
common gelatinous zooplankton known as the comb jelly.
It is found in all oceans in tropical and temperate climes, and is known to
eat gelatinous zooplankton (jellyfish) and probably small fishes and algae.
The team also analysed the stomachs of five museum specimens, mainly finding the remains
of gelatinous zooplankton and jellyfish.
«We know far too little of the ctenophore and other animals of
the gelatinous zooplankton, such as medusae.
Therefore,
gelatinous zooplankton should be permanently included in regional monitoring programmes.»
Even the species identification methods are deficient, regardless of the fact that
gelatinous zooplankton can be abundant in the ecosystem and have a major effect on both the upper and lower levels of the food web,» says Majaneva.
Knowledge is limited with respect to distribution and abundance of rare species, zooplankton productivity, spatial and temporal variability,
gelatinous zooplankton, midwater oceanic shrimps, and deep oceanic zooplankton [233].