- Kingdom: Animalia
- Phylum: Cnidaria
- Class: Hydrozoa
- Subclass: Hydroidolina
- Order: Siphonophorae
- Suborder: Physonectae
- Family: Apolemiidae
- Scientific name: Apolemia uvaria
- Norwegian: perlesnormanet
Characteristics:
The colony may form 30 meter long threads floating in the sea. Even if every colony originates from a single individual, the colony includes both sexes. Each individual has specific tasks. Some gather nutrition for the colony, some help with the reproduction while others aid with the propulsion.
Their strong poison may kill large fishes. Keep your distance from the threads! Skin contact with the Apolemia uvaria can be very unpleasant. During fall of 1997 an extraordinary blooming created serious trouble for the fish cultivation industry along the Norwegian coast. Considerable amounts of cultivated salmon died.
Habitat:
It can be found from the surface and down to approximately 100 meters depth.
Distribution:
This species is common in the Mediterranean. It is registered, but not equally frequent in North-East Atlantic Ocean, including the North Sea and the Celtic Sea.