Poisonous jellyfish Portuguese Men O' War invade Spanish waters

by Amy Judd | May 2, 2009 at 01:47 pm

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Portuguese man of war South Beach Miami 5

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One of the world's most poisonous jellyfish, the Portuguese Man O'War, has been spotted off the coast of Spain for the first time in a decade.

This means that they will settle in these waters now, meaning holidaymakers might have trouble enjoying a swim in the sea as these creatures do have a potentially lethal sting in their long tentacles.

Scientists predict that they could also end up in the waters around the Balearic Islands and the Catalan Coast, as it could be the beginning of a colonisation process, where a creature finds a new place to live due to climate change affecting where they used to stay and breed.

Their sting is 10 times stronger than a normal jellyfish, and even if they wash up on the beaches, they can be deadly because their tentacles retain their poison.

If a person is stung, it will leave red, whip-like welt on the skin and will last for a few days, although the pain should subside after about an hour. Only if the tentacles wrap around a person's neck and cause an allergic reaction to the lungs and throat can a sting be fatal however. If someone is stung, doctors recommend washing the area with salt water and applying ice.

"Climate change is changing the migration patterns of many creatures. If they establish themselves it would be very worrying because they really are very dangerous," Xavier Pastor, the European director of the Oceana ecological campaigning group, told the Independent.

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Darien K Durr

at 15:06 on May 2nd, 2009

I took this shot at NAS Pensacola in Florida while I was taking a stroll along the beach. I've never seen these jellyfish in the Gulf of Mexico. I've only seen them in the Atlantic. My cousin has been stung by one of these as well as a 6 year old while on vacation.

Darien K Durr has contributed a photo to this story.

Paschen

at 19:02 on May 2nd, 2009

Japanese Fisherman have been struggling with those for over a decade now and the problem is getting worth by the Year. France and Greece do report similar troubles well.

fetchpics

at 21:37 on May 2nd, 2009

These pics were taken @ Bocha Chita in Biscayne National Park, part of the Florida Keys. We had a National Park ranger along with us explaining the strange jellyfish.

fetchpics has contributed a photo to this story.

SamirJ

at 21:59 on May 2nd, 2009

This are signs of global climate change...!

Tough one for the beach loving people in Spain!

JaredF

at 03:13 on May 3rd, 2009

The image I posted was taken in Hollywood Florida, where these nasty animals blow onto the beach in sometimes high numbers in the spring. I once found out the hard way how nasty their burning sting can be :-(.

ada white (not verified)

at 05:04 on May 3rd, 2009

I found a very h-o-t place, where U can meet with tall h-o-t girls.

__seekingtall. c o m.Do not lose your cupid

meer cottage

at 12:47 on May 3rd, 2009

We saw hundreds of them washed up on the southern Atlantic coast of Spain near Cadiz in early February this year. We had quite bad storms before we saw them.

jazzyzazzy

at 11:54 on May 4th, 2009

got a sing from one it hurt like crazy I cried.

Genevieve L

at 19:05 on May 4th, 2009

The image I posted was taken at Bahia Honda State Park in the Florida Keys. They are very common down there, just blow up onto the beach all the time. The problem comes from all the seaweed that is also on the beach- the jellyfish get covered up and can be tough to spot.