meatball
11-27-2007, 05:44 PM
I went to the beach today and I immediately noticed these little blue things everywhere on washed up on the sand by the water. I pretty quickly assumed they were jellyfish because some of them had these air-filled balloon sac things that were still puffed up. As I walked by the water I didn't really see any in the water, but 100's washed up all up and down the beach. I avoided them while walking but I noticed people were still swimming, some even had their kids in the water, so I figured they must be a safe kind of jellyfish (but there was no way I was going to intentionally touch one).
Then when leaving I read the notes on the lifegaurd board, and saw it said under the warnings part "man o' war". So I go home and check out wikipedia and come to find that these things are downright dangerous! What the freaking hell are people doing swimming in the water!? I can only imagine that they just didn't know, but you better believe that if I had kids before they were going near those things I would have asked a lifeguard. It makes me want to go back and tell people to get the hell out of the water.
Turns out they aren't even a jellyfish by the way, but they look & act similar. They have tentacle things that can get very long, up to 200 ft, and even if a piece of that breaks off and is laying on the beach it can sting you for up to a week. :eek:
Then when leaving I read the notes on the lifegaurd board, and saw it said under the warnings part "man o' war". So I go home and check out wikipedia and come to find that these things are downright dangerous! What the freaking hell are people doing swimming in the water!? I can only imagine that they just didn't know, but you better believe that if I had kids before they were going near those things I would have asked a lifeguard. It makes me want to go back and tell people to get the hell out of the water.
Turns out they aren't even a jellyfish by the way, but they look & act similar. They have tentacle things that can get very long, up to 200 ft, and even if a piece of that breaks off and is laying on the beach it can sting you for up to a week. :eek: