soft-bodied organisms, but the diet may also include some crustacean zooplankton such as copepods, crab zoëals, barnacle nauplii & other larval planktonic organisms. Gelatinous organisms consumed include ctenophores, appendicularians and other hydromedusae, including rarely other Aequorea victoria if conditions are appropriate. Prey is ensnared in long tentacles containing nematocysts, and ingested with a highly contractile mouth that can expand to consume organisms half the medusae's size. Due to their voracious nature, Aequorea victoria density can be inversely correlated to zooplankton density, indicating a competitive presence in shared environments. The swimming velocity of Aequorea victoria does not increase as their body size increases which deems them as inefficient swimmers. Therefore, they require direct contact with their prey in order to feed which is effectively done through energetic propulsion in which pressure allows them to passively move in their environment. Predators Aequorea medusae are eaten by the voracious scyphozoa Cyanea capillata, commonly called the lion's mane jelly, as well as ctenophores, siphonophorae and other hydromedusae, including documented cases of cannibalism. Many larger specimens are found with the parasitic hyperiid amphipod Hyperia medusarum attached to the either the subumbrella or exumbrella; these amphipods may burrow into the jelly, but such activities are not lethal to the jellyfish. Luminescence This jellyfish is capable of producing flashes of blue light by a quick release of calcium (Ca2+), which interacts with the photoprotein aequorin. The blue light produced is in turn transduced to green by the now famous green fluorescent protein (GFP). This transduction of energy is called Förster resonance energy transfer (FRET). Both aequorin and GFP are important fluorescent markers frequently employed in biochemical research. In 1961, Shimomura and Johnson isolated the protein aequorin, and its small molecule cofactor, coelenterazine, from large numbers of Aequorea jellyfish at Friday Harbor Laboratories. They discovered, after initially finding bright luminescence on adding seawater to a purified sample, that calcium ions (Ca2+) were required to trigger bioluminescence. This research also marked the beginning of research into green fluorescent protein which was summarized by Shimomura. In 1967, Ridgeway and Ashley microinjected aequorin into single muscle fibers of barnacles, and observed transient calcium ion-dependent signals during muscle contraction. For his research into GFP, Osamu Shimomura was awarded the 2008 Nobel Prize for chemistry, together with Martin Chalfie and Roger Tsien. This discovery led to great advancements in the field of medicine because it allows for further understanding in treatments and medical