An international team of scientists that includes Filipino marine biologists and taxonomists has discovered a new endemic species of jellyfish from the Philippine waters.
Filipino scientists Dr. Sheldon Rey Boco of the Philippine Jellyfish Stings Project and is currently based at Griffith University in Australia and Mr. Serafin Geson III of the University of San Carlos in Cebu were part of the team of scientists that discovered the jellyfish species named Cassiopea mayeri.
The study, which was led by Dr. Edgar Gamero-Mora, a Doctor of Philosophy student at the University of São Paulo in Brazil, was conducted from 2016 to 2021.
"This discovery shows the importance of identifying and recording the identity, biology, and distribution of organisms in the midst of biodiversity crisis, characterized by significant loss of planetary life," Boco said in an e-mail to the Manila Bulletin.
"As living beings, they have implications in the cycle of nutrients and energy and their relationships to other organisms--as prey, predator or symbiotic interactor--in marine ecosystems. The jellyfish have implications on tourism, coastal recreation, and fisheries since they are stingers, but can be mild--that can affect how humans behave towards marine environment like when catching fish or other seafood in the presence of the jellyfish," he explained.
"The discovery also implies the large diversity of jellyfish in Indo-Pacific and the Philippines, which is considered the epicenter of marine biodiversity, exhibiting the highest species richness of marine life. The new species and other marine life in the Philippines form the natural heritage of the country," he added.
Boco also noted that the discovery of Cassiopea mayeri "highlights the contribution of Filipino scientists, despite being situated in a developing country, in global cutting-edge science that uses state-of-the-art technology."
The description of Cassiopea mayeri was published in the high impact journal Invertebrate Systematics.
"The new gelatinous species belong to a group of jellyfish that carry mild venom and can release mucus with stinging cells that carry venom into the water which induces the characteristic itchy water that beach bathers and fishers describe when this jellyfish is around," Boco said.
Apart from the discovery of Cassiopea mayeri, the team of scientists revived a species from its classification and is now called Cassiopea culionensis, named after Culion Bay, Palawan where it was originally found.
"The jellyfish with the name Cassiopea culionensis was formerly called C. polypoides var. culionensis and C. andromeda, which are now synonyms under C. culionensis. Synonyms are former names and identities of a species, thus they are not valid scientific names," Boco pointed out.
Boco said both C. mayeri and C. culionensis occur in the waters of Lapu-Lapu City, Cebu, and Palawan, while C. mayeri species were recorded in the waters of Calatagan, Batangas and Olongapo City.
The scientists who led the study were from Instituto de Biociências, Universidade de São Paulo, The Philippine Jellyfish Stings Project, Griffith University in Australia, University of San Carlos Cebu, National Systematics Laboratory of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, National Museum of Natural History, and Smithsonian Institution.
"Our collaboration indicates the ability of Filipinos to get involved in cutting edge or international science and our strong contribution to taxonomy and marine/ocean science," Boco said.