What is the key to the invasion success of the comb jelly Mnemiopsis (‘killer’ jelly) to European waters? New study demonstrates that even starving individuals reproduce actively, sacrificing their own body to produce eggs.
The comb jelly Mnemiopsis leidyi, native to the east coast of America, has invaded European waters multiple times during the last 30 years, first and foremost in the Black Sea, where it was suspected to have destroyed the local fish populations through feeding on fish larvae and competing with fish for zooplankton food. One key to its invasion success is it enormous reproductive potential – up to 15,000 eggs per day -, and its ability to self-fertilize (it is hermaphroditic). This study demonstrates that reproduction continues even in starving animals by channeling energy from somatic tissue into eggs. This is similar to a capital breeding strategy which is common in e.g. high Arctic breeding copepods, as opposed to income breeding where energy for reproduction is based on concurrent food intake. The study further demonstrates that income breeding is possible at food concentrations much lower than those typically found in the invaded areas of northern Europe. These life-history traits are key to the invasion success of M. leidyi.
Read the paper: here