A small box jellyfish from a brackish pond in Hong Kong has 24 eyes—but it was not newly discovered in 2026, and that eye count is not unique among box jellyfish. The species, Tripedalia maipoensis, was formally described in a scientific paper published March 20, 2023, after specimens were collected at Mai Po Nature Reserve in 2020, 2021 and 2022.
What is the Hong Kong creature with 24 eyes?
Tripedalia maipoensis is a small box jellyfish, a member of the class Cubozoa. A research team led by Professor Qiu Jianwen of Hong Kong Baptist University (HKBU) collected it in a brackish shrimp pond, locally called a gei wai, at Mai Po Nature Reserve. HKBU announced the find on April 18, 2023; the scientific description by Sun and colleagues appeared in Zoological Studies on March 20, 2023. The later April 25, 2026 Time Out article was not the date of its discovery or formal description.
The researchers named the species for Mai Po, its type locality—the place from which the specimens used to describe it were collected. HKBU named WWF-Hong Kong, Ocean Park Hong Kong and the University of Manchester as collaborators. The paper was received August 21, 2022, and accepted January 27, 2023.
What does “24 eyes” mean?
The jellyfish has four sensory structures called rhopalia, one at each bell corner. Each rhopalium contains six eyes, making 24 altogether. HKBU’s 2023 description says the researchers believe two eyes in each group have lenses capable of forming images, while the other four detect light. That arrangement amounts to eight image-forming eyes and 16 light-sensing eyes; it does not mean all 24 form detailed images. Nor is 24 eyes unique to T. maipoensis: HKBU notes that other box jellyfish have the same total.
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How large is it, and what does it look like?
HKBU described the animal as transparent and colorless, with an average body length of 1.5 cm. Each of the four corners of its bell bears a pedalium, a paddle-like structure at the base of three tentacles; the tentacles can reach up to 10 cm long, according to HKBU’s 2023 account. The pedalia help generate thrust when the jellyfish contracts.
Why was it recognized as a new species?
The eye count alone did not establish a new species. In the 2023 paper, the authors distinguished T. maipoensis by a combination of anatomical features: three pedalia at each bell corner, one tentacle on each pedalium, and forked velarial canals. They also compared it with the morphologically similar species Tripedalia cystophora using phylogenetic analyses of combined 16S, 18S and 28S ribosomal RNA gene data.
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For the 16S rRNA gene comparison with T. cystophora, the authors reported 17.4% divergence. That figure describes this particular genetic comparison, not a general measure of how different the species is in every respect. The paper identifies T. maipoensis as the fourth described species in the family Tripedaliidae and the first record of that family in Chinese coastal waters. HKBU describes it as the third species in the genus Tripedalia.
Where does it live?
When the species was described, it was known only from Mai Po. Qiu and colleagues suggested it might also occur in nearby Pearl River Estuary waters because tidal channels connect the gei wai ponds to the estuary. That is a researcher hypothesis, not a confirmed extension of the jellyfish’s range.
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Is this box jellyfish dangerous to people?
The available species-specific accounts do not establish whether T. maipoensis is dangerous, harmless or medically assessed. Box jellyfish as a group include highly venomous species, but that general fact does not show that this particular species poses a known risk. Do not touch an unidentified jellyfish based on assumptions about its appearance or reported eye count.
HKBU’s April 2023 announcement said 49 box-jellyfish species had been reported worldwide at that time. That is a dated figure from the university’s release, not a current taxonomic database total.
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Sources
- Hong Kong Baptist University, announcement of the species, April 18, 2023.
- Sun et al., scientific description in Zoological Studies, published March 20, 2023.
- ABC News, April 2023 coverage.
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