Species: Porpita Porpita
Student: Kanoe Montano
Information:
The Blue Button (otherwise known as the porpita porpita) is made up of two body structures, a “float” which is a round Frisbee shape of a golden-brown color and the jellyfish like tentacles made up of a hydroid colony. There is a mouth underneath the “float” that takes in nutrients and expels waste. While this beautiful little creature looks a lot like a jellyfish, it is called a chondrophore, a colony of polyps, which together create individual contributions to the colony. Essentially the Blue Button is a family, working together to protect itself with their stinging nematocysts that do not hurt human skin but can be irritating. They float on the surface of the water and are propelled by ocean current activity and gusts of wind. Due to the rising sea levels and more erratic currents these little Blue Buttons are being found on the shores more and more commonly.
