00:04Well, if jellyfish are getting tangled in aquariums, then how are they surviving in oceans?
00:08Like, jellyfish have survived for at least 500 million years, which is older than dinosaurs and
00:13trees, so it doesn't make sense that they could survive that long if they're getting tangled up.
00:16This really made me want to cry, so I looked into it and learned it's to do with the water
00:20current.
00:21First, yes, jellyfish can propel themselves, they pulse their bell to move, but they're mostly
00:26drifters, currents do most of the work, and in aquariums, that's actually the problem.
00:30So jellies need special tanks called creasal tanks.
00:32These create a constant circular flow to keep them suspended in the middle, so they don't
00:36sink or hit the edges.
00:37The tank itself doesn't necessarily have to be circular, but to keep the jellies alive,
00:42there must be a constant circular flow of water.
00:44But if the flow is slightly off, or too strong, or too weak, or disrupted by other jellies,
00:49they can drift into each other, and in a confined space, the tentacles are way more likely to
00:53overlap and not.
00:54But the ocean, on the other hand, is not a glass box.
00:57In the wild, the ocean currents are broader, more diffuse, and constantly shifting.
01:02And jellyfish are built for that, and they're usually far more spread out, and they're not
01:05territorial or social in the way that many mammals are.
01:08Could they tangle in the wild during storms or dense blooms?
01:12Probably.
01:12Sometimes.
01:13But chronic knotting is much more likely to happen in a glass box than in the open ocean.
01:18Not because they're bad at being jellyfish, it's just they're in captivity.
01:22If you have questions on why animals are doing that behavior or not doing that behavior,
01:25send it to us, and we'll give it a full journalistic check.
01:28Let's go.
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