What adaptations do mola mola have?

What adaptations do mola mola have?

The mouth is small, with weak beak-like jaws, adapted to a diet comprised mainly of jellyfish and other soft-bodied invertebrates. The skin is very rough and thick and the flesh is insipid and distasteful – which generally seems to deter predators.

Why are mola mola important?

Status of the Mola Mola As weird and useless as they may seem, Mola Molas are just as important as other fishes and marine animals in the ocean. Without Mola Molas, there won’t be enough predators to eat jellyfishes and control their population. Sharks, Orcas and Sea lions won’t have enough food to sustain their diet.

What are the mola mola predators?

Adults are too large to be threatened by any but the absolute largest potential predators, but medium-sized individuals are eaten by sea lions, killer whales, and large sharks. California sea lions are known to bite the fins off of small ocean sunfish and then play with them like frisbees.

How do mola mola defend themselves?

The sunfish stay in schools to protect themselves from predators. Once they are large enough, they isolate themselves. The sunfish sees these as jellyfish and tries to eat them. The bag can become stuck in their throats or their stomachs which can prevent them from eating.

Why do mola mola look like that?

All known sunfish have an unusual pseudo-tail that contributes to their vaguely oval-shaped appearance. Instead, the rear end of a sunfish is covered by portions of two other fins: the dorsal fin on top of the creature and the anal fin on its underbelly. Together, they form a “pseudo-tail” known as the clavus.

Why do sunfish eat jellyfish?

Ocean sunfish are foraging predators that will eat a variety of food, but their preferred prey are jellyfishes. Jellyfishes are almost exclusively made up of water and are low in calories/nutrients, so a fish with a body as large as the ocean sunfish’s has to eat a whole lot of jellyfishes to support its weight.

How does the sunfish survive?

By using the sun and warm surface waters to regulate and raise their body temperature, sunfish are able to spend more time foraging in the cold depths. This dependence on the sun for thermoregulation means that sunfish are only able to hunt in deep waters during the day.

How big is a Mola mola fish?

But they’re not bony fish — the skeletons of sharks and rays are made from cartilage. So when you look at all the other non-elasmobranch fishes out there, molas take the prize for size. The average Mola mola is roughly 8.2 feet by 5.9 feet, but they can grow as large as 14 feet by 10 feet.

Do mola fish have parasites?

As deep water fish, they are prone to infection by parasites. 54 different species of parasite have been identified as living on the skin of molas. One mola parasite is the larval stage of a shark tapeworm so at some point the mola most likely falls prey to shark enabling this parasite to complete its lifecycle!

How long does it take for a Mola mola to grow?

Their futile attempt to raise a Mola mola in captivity saw the fish grow to 800 pounds in 14 months, forcing the aquarium to airlift the colossal creature out of its enclosure with a helicopter. Fortunately for the fish, it was returned to its natural habitat.

Why is the Mola mola so vulnerable?

Mola mola primarily feed on jellyfish, but the poor creatures now often mistake plastic bags for nutritious food. Sadly, they swallow these bags whole, which results in them choking to death. IUCN The ocean sunfish is an officially vulnerable species due to pollution, fishing, and accidental death.