Man of War
Man of War
The man of war is most commonly found in the tropical and subtropical regions of the Pacific and Indian oceans and the Atlantic Gulf Stream, but is seen in warm seas worldwide, including the Mediterranean. Strong winds often drive it inshore. The man of war is feared for its powerful sting. Among the simplest of animal form, it has no brain and reacts mechanically to stimuli. Although the man of war looks like one animal, its actually a colony made up of many interrelated animals (polyps) which each perform different tasks. It has tentacles up to 60 m long and a float said to resemble the hat worn by medieval Portuguese sailors, hence another common name, Portuguese man of war.
Two in One
Each man of war exists in two distinct stages: as a floating colony of polyps (tubular structures adapted for special tasks) and as a tiny, free swimming medusa, which looks like a jellyfish. The medusa is the sexually mature stage of the animal and produces both eggs and sperm. It develops like a tiny bud on one of the reproductive polyps which hang off the float before breaking free to become a floating larva (fertilized egg). It stars as a single polyp, but produces more polyps, eventually becoming a complete colony.
Part of bodies
- Stingers – stinging polyps each have a long tentacle, inside which are the nematocysts, or stinging cells.
- Polyp power digestive polyps draw prey into their digestive cavities. Two other types of polyp have the task of either trapping and killing prey, or reproducing.
- The gas filled float, translucent and tinted blue, pink or violet, acts as a sail
- Crest can either be left-sided or right-sided
- Float extends up to 15 cm above water and grows to 9-30cm in length
Statistics
- status – common
- length – float: 30 cm, tentacles: 10-50 m
- sexual maturity – when medusa breaks free
- breeding season – year round
- number of young – numerous
- diet – fish larvea and small fish
- lifespan – a few months
Related species
The man of war belongs to the Cnidaria phylum, which includes corals and sea anemones. It is in the Hydrozoa class which contains thousands of species, including the freshwater hydra. It is commanly associated with jellyfish, but the relationship between them is a fairly distant one.
omg i like love the colors of the portuguese man of war i meen like seriously it is sooooo pretty!!!