Jellyfish

There is nothing like a jellyfish. Even its closest relatives, the corals and sea anemones, look nothing like it (at least in their adult, polyp forms). One could hardly imagine a creature more strange, graceful–and delicate. To say the least, all jellyfish require a dedicated, specialized species tank (ideally a “kreisel” style system). And, to say the least, the jellyfish tank is anything but exciting. In fact, it is utterly barren but for three things: Saltwater, jellyfish and jellyfish food. Sounds easy to maintain, then, right? Wrong. To want a jellyfish tank, you really have to like jellyfish. Successfully keeping jellies can be an immensely satisfying and rewarding endeavor. Still, setting up and maintaining a jellyfish aquarium is not a casual undertaking at all. For one, these sensitive animals are not tolerant of suboptimal water quality. They also dislike change. This means that you cannot let things slide and then expect to fix them in a moment with a big water change (as with many hardy fish species, for example). Such a system requires daily monitoring and consistent maintenance. Adding to this challenge is the fact that they require near-constant feeding. And a whole lot of food, at that. And, considering the amount of waste a jelly can produce, they’re not especially efficient at eating/digesting their food. The result is a massive bioload that necessitates (on top of a rigorous maintenance regimen) a powerful filtration system. In this section, you will learn how to set up a species tank for, as well as provide ideal foods and nutrition for, the most commonly kept species.