Lampadena

Lampadena is a genus of comb jellies (ctenophores) in the phylum Ctenophora. Members are pelagic, gelatinous marine animals that drift or swim actively in open oceans worldwide. They are transparent or pale, often lens-shaped or elongate, and produce a shimmering display as their rows of ctene plates refract light or bioluminesce.

Anatomy and feeding: Like other ctenophores, Lampadena species swim using ctene plates arranged in comb-like rows along the body. They are predatory plankton feeders that capture prey with tentacles or oral lobes bearing sticky cells (collocytes or colloblasts) that trap small crustaceans, larvae, and other microzooplankton.

Distribution and habitat: Lampadena species have a broad, cosmopolitan distribution and are typically found in surface to mid-water columns, often in temperate to tropical oceans. Many species undertake diel vertical migrations, rising at night toward the surface and retreating by day.

Reproduction and life cycle: Lampadena reproduce sexually, with eggs and sperm released into the water. The resulting free-swimming planula-like larvae develop into juvenile ctenophores, passing through a cydippid stage common to many genera.

Ecology and research: Lampadena are part of the gelatinous zooplankton community and play roles in marine food webs as predators of small plankton. They are also studied for their light-emitting properties and their responses to ocean warming and changing plankton communities.

See also: Ctenophora, Gelatinous zooplankton, Marine biology.