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poppy meadow; antelope valley, california

A diver off the coast of Papua New Guinea recorded this extremely rare jellyfish swimming alongside them, only to find out this is only the second ever recorded sighting of this species.

Four groups of striped tentacles trail behind the jellyfish’s translucent body, which is spotted with rings of varying size. Inside the bell is a bright red organ that is most likely the animal’s gastrovascular cavity.

It’s called Chirodectes maculatus (Latin for “spotted”), and it’s an extremely uncommon species of box jelly found off the coast of Queensland, Australia. Box jellies, distinguished for their boxy shape, are often venomous to humans—some are even potentially fatal. But C. maculatus isn’t known to be.