What is a pink meanie?
Pink meanies were first classified in 2010 when scientists realised that they belonged to an entirely new jelly family: Drymonema, a subgroup of true jellies. There are currently only three described species, with the South African species still in the process of being classified! For now, our South African pink meanie is known as Drymonema sp.
Like floating masses of candy floss, pink meanies are certainly a once-in-a-lifetime sight. Not only are they beautiful to look at, but they are also notoriously difficult to house in aquaria. This is because they are “jellivorous” – they eat other jellies. In fact, the Two Oceans Aquarium is the only aquarium in the world to successfully display them!
And another first? The Aquarium has five pink meanies on exhibit. While pink meanies eat other jellies, they don’t eat each other.
Jelly-eating jellies
One of the reasons that pink meanies are rarely seen in the wild is because of their diet as jelly-eating jellies - they are jellivorous. Thus, they are only ever experienced after and during large jelly swarms along the coastline. This is how our team first encountered pink meanies after a swarm of night light jellies (Pelagia noctiluca) occurred in Table Bay.
Previous experimentation at the Aquarium revealed that pink meanies only eat Scyphozoa (true jellyfish, like compass jellies) and Cubozoa (box jellies). They feed on these jellies by capturing and reeling them in with their long oral arms. Pink meanies are actually considered the most efficient jellyvorous jelly, as they can digest their prey within two to three hours. Its Mexican cousins have been seen consuming up to 34 other jellies at once!
Where do pink meanies live?
The South African pink meanie is rather unlike its relatives, which are predominantly found in the warm waters of the Mexican coast and the Mediterranean Sea. Our local pink meanies are the only known members of the Drymonema family to inhabit cold water. It is thought to be endemic as this variety has only been observed around the southwestern coast of Africa, an unusual habitat for Drymonema.
While there is still a lot to learn about the South African pink meanie and the Drymonema family as a whole, the Two Oceans Aquarium is thrilled to be housing five of these stunning jellies for the first time in six years. This is an unmissable opportunity for anyone visiting Cape Town!