Jellyfish

This sensory experience is spread over more than 300 square metres and will captivate guests with enormous displays of jellyfish, interactive activities, incredible lighting installations and educational facts about the gelatinous sea creatures.

Guests will be immersed in the beauty of a jellyfish invasion as they are surrounded by thousands of mesmerising creatures and spectacular lighting projections across multiple displays including an amazing spherical globe filled with swarming jellyfish.   

Moon Jellies are the most common jellyfish found in aquariums around the world as they are the simplest to breed. The flower pattern on the jellies head doubles as both their stomachs and reproductive organs. As such it's always cool to see them after they've eaten as they will most likely appear as bright orange! The largest we have grown ours to be has been about 40cm in diameter, which we are currently trying to beat. This species doesn't possess a potent venom and is generally safe for people to interact with.

This species is photosynthetic and is constantly pulsing, which is how they catch their food. They filter feed by using their tentacles to create a web to catch small particles and organisms and then strain it before bringing it into their mouths. The largest individual ever recorded was over 70cm in diameter.

Typically, Jellyfish sting their prey and guide their catch to their mouth with their tentacles, but this species is a little different. Instead of having one mouth they have hundreds, sometimes even thousands, covering their cauliflower like tentacles. This species does have venom but is typically harmless to humans, only those with sensitive skin would be at risk of a reaction.

This is a really unique species. This Jellyfish is photosynthetic and grows zooxanthellae on their tentacles (hence their upside-down behavior) which they then eat! Their bell acts as a suction cup and allows them to stay in the same place even faced with gentle to moderate currents. They are able to sting swimming prey but that is restricted to whatever animal is silly enough to swim through them. These animals do swarm in groups and when one is disturbed they all will expel venom that looks like snot in the water.

The journey continues to The Jelly Lab where guests can discover strange facts about the jellyfish lifecycle and take a peek behind the scenes as SEA LIFE Melbourne staff tend to the blooms of these graceful (and sometimes dangerous) sea creatures.

In this zone, children and adults alike can immerse themselves by crawling through an amazing cylindrical tank filled with oscillating jellyfish. Going past the lab, children can design their own colourful jellyfish in SEA LIFE Melbourne’s Interactive Wonder Room, which will come alive on a giant wall projection.  

Ocean Invaders will also educate guests about the causes behind the increasing population – or invasion – of certain species of jellyfish in our oceans and the actions people can take to limit these exponential and sometimes problematic population increases.