The ‘upside-down’ jellyfish (Cassiopea sp.) thrives in near-shore marine habitats.

The ‘upside-down’ jellyfish (Cassiopea sp.) thrives in near-shore marine habitats. It is commonly found on seagrass beds or in mangrove forests, resting its exumbrella against the sediment - exposing its oral arms to the sunlight. Why this fellow is sunbathing all the time? Its oral arms carry symbiotic zooxanthellae, dinoflagellates (marine algae) of the genus Symbiodiniumthat assimilate carbon and nitrogen for this gelatinous friend.