![Pinterest](https://pinterest.com/pin/create/button/?url=https://uknews.evprotec.com/swimmers-heading-to-the-seaside-warned-to-watch-out-for-venomous-creature/&media=https://uknews.evprotec.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/0_Portuguese-Man-O-War-Washed-Ashore-On-Juhu-Beach.jpg&description=While sharks get most the bad press when it comes to animals you don't want to run into at the beach, there's another creature which may look pretty but its sting packs a punch With summer in full swing, people are flocking to beaches up and down the coasts of America. But while sharks seem to be the top danger on everyone's mind, there's another deadly creature we should be bracing ourselves for an encounter with. The Portuguese man o' war show up from July through to August, depending on offshore winds from the tropics. They can be seen anywhere from Montauk to the Jersey Shore, and they are a lot nastier than their pretty colours suggest. The creature has a "devastating" sting, said Paul Bologna, Professor of Biology and Director of the Marine Biology and Coastal Sciences Program at Montclair State University. He explained: "It's like walking in Manhattan. You might get mugged. That's why to pay attention to where you are and keep your wits about you." He warned: "On the beach, it's not as bad. If you're out in the water, they've got these big, long tentacles that can do some serious damage." The man o' war fires barbs from its tentacles, loaded with toxin, they are designed to incapacitate and kill anything that brushes against it. Even if the animal is dead and washes up on the shore, the cells still fire. While the man o' war sting rarely kills humans, it can cause intense pain and welts on exposed skin which comes into contact with the tentacles. According to the state Department of Environmental Conservation the Portuguese man o' war are usually reported in New York's marine waters "when water temperatures are at their peak". Some made an early entrance, having been spotted on Amagansett Beach two weeks ago after strong south swells associated with storms passed south of Long Island. While they may look like a jellyfish, they are something called a siphonophore - a closely related group of animals. The siphonophore is comprised of a colony of specialised, ge){kind=link}
While sharks get most the bad press when it comes to animals you don’t want to run into at the beach, there’s another creature which may look pretty but its sting packs a punch
With summer in full swing, people are flocking to beaches up and down the coasts of America. But while sharks seem to be the top danger on everyone’s mind, there’s another deadly creature we should be bracing ourselves for an encounter with.
The Portuguese man o’ war show up from July through to August, depending on offshore winds from the tropics. They can be seen anywhere from Montauk to the Jersey Shore, and they are a lot nastier than their pretty colours suggest.
The creature has a “devastating” sting, said Paul Bologna, Professor of Biology and Director of the Marine Biology and Coastal Sciences Program at Montclair State University. He explained: “It’s like walking in Manhattan. You might get mugged. That’s why to pay attention to where you are and keep your wits about you.”
He warned: “On the beach, it’s not as bad. If you’re out in the water, they’ve got these big, long tentacles that can do some serious damage.”