Page 72 - Magnificence Everywhere

THE UNKNOWN SIDE OF JELLYFISH

Everyone knows of jellyfish and how interesting and strange they are to us.
However, the jellyfish, a creature made up of fully 95 percent water, also has a num-
ber of surprising features that are not generally known. Some of its varieties, for ex-
ample, confuse their enemies by emitting light, while some others produce deadly
poisons within their bodies.
Jellyfish can live in almost any climate conditions, and most are dangerous to
other creatures. The jellyfish has a transparent structure and tentacles dangling from
the lower part of its body. In some species, there is a poisonous liquid present in the
tentacles. The jellyfish catches its prey by squirting this poison and killing its ene-
mies. Those jellyfish species lacking poison are not, of course, defenseless. Some of
them use special light-producing cells to protect themselves. They act in a planned
and methodical way to save themselves from sea turtles, sea birds, fish and whales,
all of which are their enemies. When they swim away from their enemies, their entire
body gives off light. However, when their enemies attempt to bite them, they turn off
the light in their bell-shaped parts and detach from their bodies their tentacles,
where the light is still turned on. In this way, their enemies are attracted to the tenta-
cles. Taking advantage of this situation, the jellyfish immediately swim away.
The Portuguese man-of-war (picture at bottom left) is a giant variety of jellyfish
which is also known as the "blue jellyfish." It lives in all tropical and temperate cli-
mate zones, including the Mediterranean.
A Portuguese man-of-war has a deep blue sail-like organ that rises up to 20 cm (8
inches) from the sea's surface. It is this organ that enables the animal to swim and
move. In its spiral-shaped tentacles are capsules containing toxins which cause
paralysis.
All these features of jellyfish are interesting. How can a creature made almost en-
tirely of water, that withers and dies as soon as it is exposed to the sun, produce
chemical substances? And how could it develop tactics to confuse its enemies?
The jellyfish lacks eyes to see its prey and enemies, nor does it have a brain. It is
only a jelly-like water mass, even though it performs conscious behavior such as
hunting by employing various tactics, and escaping from its enemies. It is evident
Magnificence Everywhere escapably arrive at very important conclusions that broaden our horizons. One who
that the mind producing such solutions cannot belong to a jellyfish. When such
pieces of information about the jellyfish are examined from this perspective, we in-

reflects upon jellyfish, and their features and actions, will understand that they can't
do anything on their own, and that they are controlled by a power that has authority
over everything. This power, which has no equal, belongs to Allah. Creating a daz-
zling array of animals of various kinds, Allah manifests His superior wisdom and
matchless knowledge in these creatures. The jellyfish is only one example of this.

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