Australian box jellyfish. The most poisonous jellyfish in the world

There are several types of jellyfish, the stings of which affect people in completely different ways, and can lead to either a minor injury or a fatal outcome.

Different types of jellyfish have different effects when they sting people. The jellyfish is made up of 95% water and 5% solids, and does not have a well-designed body like others. solid consists of three layers:

• Epidermis is the outer layer.
• The mesoglea is a thick, jelly-like middle globe.
• Gastrodermis is the inner layer.

Jellyfish sting other creatures using their tentacles. Wounds can be healed in different ways and it is strictly recommended to consult a doctor after first aid. Removing the tentacles using tweezers or a stick is necessary to avoid direct contact with the skin. Vinegar is used to neutralize poison, but it can be substituted sea ​​water or baking soda. Lightly shaving the affected area will reduce the risk of residual nematocysts.

This species is considered the largest of its kind. The habitat range includes the northern parts of the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans to the Arctic Ocean. The maximum diameter is 1.8 meters and 17 centimeters, while the huge species are 36.5 meters long. The tentacles of a jellyfish can reach 30 m and are used for attack. But, despite such size, bites of this species are not fatal.

The name of this species corresponds to the cabbage umbrella shape. Medusa differs from others in its cannon-shaped umbrella. These views were filmed in the midwest Atlantic Ocean, in the east-central and northwestern parts of the Pacific. It feeds mainly on zooplankton, including veligers. The cannon jellyfish is quite toxic and its venom will lead to heart disease.

Aurelia aurita is a translucent jellyfish that lives in the World Ocean. It grows to 25-40.5 centimeters in diameter. The jellyfish is not painted in exquisite colors. It uses its tentacles to hunt for frugivores, primarily plankton and other small creatures. The moon jellyfish lives up to several months, its life limit is 6 years.

Sea nettle prefers open waters of the Pacific, Atlantic and Indian Oceans. They differ physical characteristics Depending on where they live, they can be identified by their golden-brown umbrella, which can reach 3 meters. The tentacles that trail under the mushroom can reach a length of 4.5 meters. Sea nettles use stinging cells when hunting, which are very painful to humans.

Several species of box jellyfish have deadly dangerous poison. They inhabit tropical and subtropical zones in the oceans, but the most dangerous live in the Indo-Pacific region. The box jellyfish relies on its tentacles for hunting and protection. Some have already recorded human deaths, while others have no effect on people

Scuba divers and snorkelers are perhaps the most feared of this species, as it contains the most dangerous venom of its kind. Jellyfish populations live in the marine waters of the United States and Australia. This little creature very difficult to detect. Despite its small size, the jellyfish is responsible for spot syndrome, which is accompanied by headaches, nausea, muscle and abdominal pain, hypertension, back pain, vomiting, chest pain and pulmonary edema. If left untreated, the syndrome can lead to death.

The most dangerous jellyfish - video

Video about the most dangerous jellyfish from the channel S to the world in fact:

How many of the most poisonous animals are there on the planet? It seems like a lot. Here is another representative of them - Australian cubic jellyfish or "sea wasp". Its poison is enough to kill 60 adults in just 3 minutes.

It lives on the northern coast of Australia. Jellyfish can be found both at a sufficient distance from the shore and in shallow water.

In appearance, this small jellyfish seems very harmless. Its dome has a rounded cubic shape and does not exceed 45 centimeters in diameter.

Rounded cubic jellyfish dome

The tentacles of the sea wasp are divided into 4 zones, each of which contains 15 thin tentacles. During swimming, they contract and reach a length of about 40 centimeters. But during hunting they can stretch up to 1.5 meters.

Long and thin tentacles of a jellyfish

Another dangerous factor of the jellyfish is the transparency of the dome and tentacles. This makes it very difficult to notice in the water. There are also individuals of a pale blue color.

The sea wasp's favorite food is shrimp and small fish. She does not chase her prey, but waits for it. If the victim accidentally swims by and even slightly touches one of the tentacles, then he is finished.

Their tentacles are completely covered with stinging cells, which inject poison into the body of the victim, which is considered one of the deadliest in the world. They cause terrible burns, which most often lead to rapid death.

Sea wasp burns

sea ​​wasp stings its victim several times. This increases the concentration of poison in the victim's body. Often those stung simply do not have time to reach the shore or boat and drown.

Burns are accompanied by an intense burning sensation, which can be slightly relieved with 5% table vinegar. It inhibits stinging cells that remain on human skin. Then the remnants of the tentacles must be urgently removed using tweezers. After contact with a box jellyfish, you should immediately seek medical help. If you have time, of course.

Its venom simultaneously affects the nervous system, heart and skin. It works very quickly. There have been cases where people died 4 minutes after contact with a jellyfish.

It is estimated that burns kill one person every year in Australia. Several are known deaths that happened not too long ago.

So, in 2002, 2 scuba divers met a jellyfish during a dive and decided to play with it a little. The first, who received more extensive burns, died after 30 seconds. The second one managed to swim to shore, but died an hour later.

Another case. An eleven-year-old girl, walking along the shore, accidentally touched a transparent sea wasp, which washed ashore during high tide. A few minutes later the child died.

Warning sign

To avoid such tragedies, from October to March, when the jellyfish swims very close to the shore, swimming is prohibited on some beaches. For greater safety, special warning signs are installed in swimming areas and mesh barriers are installed, through which jellyfish cannot get through. And people are safe.

But still there is an animal in the world that can resist it. toxic poison. This is a sea turtle that happily feasts on these jellyfish.

The Thai authorities have decided to protect tourists vacationing on the west coast of the country from the most dangerous jellyfish in the world - “box jellyfish” or “sea wasp”. We decided to find out what other poisonous sea ​​creatures Swimmers should beware.

"Sea Wasp"

The world's most dangerous jellyfish, the box jellyfish (Chironex fleckeri), can be found on the west coast of Thailand, from Ko Lanta to Ko Muk. Box jellyfish are also common off the coast of northern Australia and Indonesia, preferring quiet coves near sandy beaches.

The dome of the jellyfish reaches the size of a basketball, they themselves are pale blue and almost transparent, which creates an additional danger for swimmers due to the fact that the jellyfish is difficult to see. Jellyfish have four bundles of 15 tentacles, which can stretch up to 3 meters in length. The tentacles of the “sea wasp” are covered with stinging cells that contain very strong poison.

A box jellyfish sting causes excruciating pain and respiratory paralysis. The poison affects not only the skin, but also the nervous system and heart. Death can occur within five minutes, so an antidote must be administered during this time. However, the victim may simply not have time to swim to shore due to painful shock or a heart attack. If a person does not die from suffocation or drowning, he suffers from pain for several days. Poorly healing ulcers remain at the site of the burn, and then scars.

It is believed that the condition of victims of box jellyfish venom can be alleviated by vinegar; after using vinegar, breathing may be restored or cardiopulmonary resuscitation may be required. Thus, on the west coast of Thailand, “vinegar stations” are being opened, where anyone injured by contact with a jellyfish can get emergency assistance, reported by Thailand News. In addition, all remnants of tentacles must be carefully removed from the burn site. It should be remembered that removed tentacles remain dangerous, and even when dried, they can restore their properties when moistened.

Irukandji

The poisonous Irukandji jellyfish lives in the Pacific Ocean, mainly in the waters of Australia. However, according to recent studies, global warming is leading to the gradual spread of irukandji in the waters of the world's oceans.

An adult specimen resembles a small transparent whitish bell approximately 15-25 mm in diameter in umbrella size. It has 4 long thin almost transparent tentacles up to 1 meter long, covered with stinging cells. Jellyfish venom causes a chain of paralytic effects in humans, including severe headaches, back pain, muscle pain, abdominal and pelvic pain, nausea and vomiting, sweating, high blood pressure and pulmonary edema. In some cases, a burn can lead to death.

Unlike the “sea wasp”, this box jellyfish does not release venom from the entire cell, but shoots it from the tip of the tentacle, which is why the venom has a delayed effect, and a light bite is not taken seriously by swimmers. The symptoms described above, called “Ikuranji Syndrome,” begin only after 30 to 60 minutes. No antidote has been found for the venom of the Ikuranji; those stung are kept alive until the poison is released naturally. As an immediate action, burn areas are treated with vinegar.

It is worth noting that special protective nets that prevent jellyfish from entering swimming areas are effective against large jellyfish, such as "sea wasp", but do not help against Ikuranji.

"Portuguese man-of-war"

Physalia or "Portuguese man-of-war" lives in tropical waters oh, periodically the beaches of Thailand, Spain, and Italy are closed due to the invasion of these jellyfish. Sometimes “ships” accumulate off the coast of Great Britain and France.

Externally, the “ship” resembles balloon, from which clusters of short tentacles and a stinging “tail” extend. Physalia look like jellyfish, but are actually a colony marine organisms. The “ship” represents four types of polyp. One of them is a gas bubble that rises above the water and allows the colony to stay afloat. The remaining polyps are under water and are responsible for different functions. In particular, the tentacles responsible for the defense of the Portuguese man-of-war can reach 50 meters. They are covered with poison, the contact of which on human skin causes excruciating pain and, extremely rarely, death. Other symptoms of poisoning: damage to the nervous and circulatory systems, respiratory function, fever and general malaise. A person affected by physalia poison can hardly stay afloat.

Upon contact with the “blue bottle,” acute pain occurs immediately, and numerous stripes appear on the affected skin. The pain lasts for several hours, the stung area may bleed, and sometimes small ulcers occur, which subsequently leave scars. Interestingly, repeated damage to the “ship” by poison is more difficult to tolerate, and sometimes severe allergic reactions occur.

The poison of the “ship” cannot be washed off fresh water, from this it is released from the still intact stinging cells, and the pain increases sharply. Vinegar, which is used for burns after contact with other jellyfish, in this case may be useless, according to some experts. When providing first aid, you need to remove the tentacles from the skin without touching them, moisten the damaged area with plenty of sea water.

At the same time, meetings with “ Portuguese ship“It’s easier to avoid than with the “sea wasp” - the physalia is clearly visible from a distance, as it has a brightly colored dome and floats on the surface of the water.

Portuguese man-of-war are usually found in groups of a thousand or more individuals. Physalia usually do not approach the coast, but they can be washed ashore by the wind. Like other jellyfish, beached physalia remain dangerous.

Cross Medusa

The poisonous cross jellyfish lives in coastal waters northern Pacific Ocean (from China to California), often found in Primorye. A small population has also been recorded in the western Atlantic. Jellyfish stay in thickets of eelgrass.

The diameter of the jellyfish's dome is 25–40 mm, the body is transparent with a brown-red cross inside. Along the edges of the dome there are about 60 thin tentacles bearing thickenings - accumulations of stinging cells. The length of the tentacles can vary; for fully extended tentacles, it exceeds the diameter of the umbrella.

Infection by the stinging cells of the cross jellyfish is not fatal, but extremely painful. Moreover, if the victim receives a second burn from the cross jellyfish, the consequences may be more serious, even leading to the death of the person.

The crossfish is also nicknamed the “clinging jellyfish” due to the presence of special suction cups on its tentacles. As soon as you touch one of the tentacles, the jellyfish rushes in that direction with its whole body, trying to attach itself using suction cups. The bather gets burned, the skin turns red and blisters. In case of a burn, you must immediately get out of the water, as after 10-30 minutes lower back pain, numbness of the limbs, difficulty breathing, nausea, and thirst begin to appear. The effect of the poison lasts 3-4 days.

Cyanea gigantea

Cyanea gigantea, also known as Cyanea hairy or "lion's mane", is the largest jellyfish in the world, the diameter of its dome can exceed 2 meters, and the length of the tentacles reaches 37 meters.

Giant cyanea lives in cold and moderately cold waters; it is also found off the coast of Australia, but is most numerous in the northern seas of the Atlantic and Pacific Ocean, as well as in open waters Arctic seas. IN warm seas cyanea does not take root, and if it does penetrate into softer climatic zones, then it does not grow more than half a meter in diameter. These jellyfish prefer to stay in the surface layers of coastal areas.

The color of the body of the giant cyanide depends on its size - small individuals are colored orange and yellow-brown, while larger ones have red, brown and purple shades predominating in the color of the bell and tuft of tentacles. Numerous tentacles grow from the jellyfish's bell, resembling the tangled mane of a lion. Hence the popular name for cyanea – “lion’s mane”.

Cyanea tentacles are armed with stinging cells. The poison is quite strong, but not fatal to healthy person. It can cause an allergic reaction, a rash on the skin and a burning sensation of varying degrees of intensity (depending on the sensitivity of the skin). The rash can be painful, and the toxins in the venom can cause allergies. One case of death from the poison of this jellyfish has been recorded in the world.

Evgeniy Marushevsky

freelancer, constantly traveling around the world

It's ridiculous to turn down an exotic vacation after learning that there will be wasps. But if we're talking about about the sea wasp, then quickly change your tickets to another direction!

We are not talking about an annoying striped insect or another flying creature similar to it that lives near sea ​​shores. A wasp “swimming” in sea waters (sea wasp) is the most poisonous jellyfish in the world. That's what people called this dangerous creature, which has its own official name- Chironex fleckeri. It belongs to the class of box jellyfish, a species of marine cnidarians. Its distribution areas are considered to be the waters off the coast of Northern Australia and Indonesia.

In general, these inhabitants of the seas and oceans are 95% water. They lack a brain, but at the same time they have effective weapon. Most "jellyfish" have stinging cells that can release a deadly sting. The interesting thing is that before this, the pressure inside them reaches 136 atmospheres! After this, the cell cracks and the toxin flies out at a speed that far exceeds the flight of a bullet. This phenomenon is considered one of the fastest movements in nature.

The sea box (its second “pseudonym”) has earned its fame for its ability to inflict painful and fatal burns: its long tentacles sea ​​creature covered with nematocytes - stinging cells containing poison. A translucent creature of “innocent blueness” is capable of destroying sixty people in three minutes! Observations over the last hundred years report a similar number of human deaths from rendezvous with sea wasps.

In its "jellyfish society", Chironex fleckeri is considered one of the largest. Its dome is the size of a basketball, and its translucent blue body makes it inconspicuous in the water column. This adds danger to anyone who wants to splash around in the sea.

It has four bundles of tentacles, fifteen in each. When this dangerous beauty swims, they contract and are no more than 15 centimeters in length. But when it’s time to hunt, the tentacles become thinner and grow up to three meters!

Like other representatives of the box jellyfish class, the box jellyfish has light-sensitive devices that are equipped with two dozen eyes (our heroine has 24). To this day, it is not known whether these “eyes” are capable of tracking an object and forming images, because jellyfish completely lack a central nervous system. Scientists have differing opinions on this matter.

The sea wasp's menu consists of small fish and shrimp. But the poisonous creature itself can go for lunch as the main course. sea ​​turtles- the only animals that are absolutely not vulnerable to the venom of the blue jellyfish, and it is part of their diet.

The most terrible burns of Chironex fleckeri can cause instant death, since its poison instantly affects the nervous system and skin. The pain that appears immediately after contact with its tentacles is so strong and painful that it can lead to death from painful shock. But for a burn to cause trouble of this nature, the amount of poison must be truly impressive. This is considered contact with three meters of tentacles of a box jellyfish.

The poison works quickly! History knows of cases of death from a sea wasp burn that occurred in no more than four minutes. Note that this is much faster than the tragic consequences after being bitten by a snake or poisonous insect.

Despite the deplorable picture, there is an antidote to this jellyfish. But, unfortunately, it is often difficult to help a victim who is far away. Such a swimmer does not have time to swim to the shore or boat and dies of a heart attack. But if you managed to help pull the victim out of the water, then the immediate remedy is vinegar, which can neutralize the nematocysts that did not have time to react. It is strictly forbidden to rub the bite site or pour water or other liquids on it, which will trigger the release of toxic substances.

If dangerous meeting occurred, then it is important to remove the tentacles that wrap around his body from the victim. This should be done carefully, using rubber gloves or tweezers. It may surprise you, but even removed tentacles pose a serious danger to humans. And that's not it! Their dried fragments are restored with the slightest moisture. It is known that the usual table vinegar is able to slightly neutralize the effect of “jellyfish” poison.

In the practice of treating Australian snake bites, a simple technique is used to prevent the dangerous distribution of venom throughout the vessels: rigid fixation of the affected limb with a bandage. The same method cannot be used in cases of burns from box jellyfish, since bandaging only helps the nematocysts. It is very important to administer the special serum on time.

Despite the fact that warning signs are installed in places where poisonous jellyfish may appear, “brave” tourists often ignore such signs. The authorities have thought of an opportunity to let vacationers splash in sea water: perimeter nets have been installed on public beaches.

The five most poisonous jellyfish in the world

The Miroscope tries to “open the eyes” of those inexperienced tourists who believe that the water is the best scary beast- shark. The translucent cute jellyfish, as you have already found out, can be much more dangerous if you let your guard down.

So, you are familiar with the sea wasp (aka the boll wasp). Fortunately, it’s in absentia :) But she’s not the only one on the list that travel lovers need to know. Let's continue our acquaintance!

Number two - irukandji

Her abode is the Pacific Ocean in the region of Australia. However, the sharp warming on our planet allowed scientists to make a disappointing forecast: the jellyfish appeared in the World Ocean and its spread there continues.

A small “umbrella” no more than 25 mm in diameter has four meter-long tentacles dotted with stinging cells. If the box jellyfish shoots out its poison throughout the entire cell, then the irukandji sprays it only with the tip of the tentacle. Some bathers do not even pay attention to the mini-burn, but the poison begins to act slowly, gradually intensifying. Within an hour the person becomes ill: terrible pains in the body, including internal organs, headache. Nausea appears, blood pressure rises, and pulmonary edema begins. In rare cases, death may occur.

How to help the victim? Immediately treating the burn site with vinegar will help relieve some of the effects of the poison. In a medical institution, the patient’s life is saved by supporting him with special medications until the poison leaves the body on its own. Unfortunately, no antidote has been found for Irukandji.

It must be remembered that the nets that help prevent sea wasp visits on beaches will not protect you from small irukandji at all.

Number three is physalia. She is also “The Portuguese Man of War”

Despite the fact that this type of jellyfish prefers tropical waters, its accumulations are sometimes observed off the coast of France and Great Britain. During real invasions of physalia, many Spanish and Italian beaches are closed. The beaches of Thailand also suffer from “ships”.

This strange creature(in fact, it does not belong to the jellyfish) - a real colony of amazing organisms of four polyps: a gas bubble that rises above the surface of the water, and others hiding under the water and responsible for different purposes. The length of the defensive tentacles can reach 50 meters!

The venom of the tentacles rarely causes death, but the pain caused by its contact with the skin is excruciating. In addition, other symptoms arise: body temperature rises, it becomes difficult for a person to breathe and stay afloat. Traces remain on the skin - bright stripes-burns that will remain for life in the form of scars. Fesalia, which washed ashore sea ​​wave, remains dangerous for a long time.

While the sea wasp is very easy to miss in the water, the “boat” is clearly visible on the surface due to its bright color. At night, colonies of these marine organisms are capable of creating a beautiful glow.

Number "four" - cross jellyfish

Yours unusual name This jellyfish received a clear cross located on its body. It is formed by internal organs, which are clearly visible through its colorless umbrella. The largest specimens of the cross do not reach more than four centimeters in diameter (the average size is 25−30 mm). Along the edges of the transparent dome there are from six to nine dozen thin tentacles. When expanded, their thickness exceeds the body thickness of the jellyfish by five to seven times. Jellyfish are often called “clinging” jellyfish because their tentacles are covered with suckers.

The beauty can be found in the eastern waters of the Pacific and Atlantic. It began to be observed more and more often in Primorye. She prefers sea thickets, where the water is perfectly heated and is not crystal clear.

Unwanted contact with a cross will not lead to death, but will be remembered for a long time by painful sensations. The surprising thing is that repeated burns can already lead to death.

If a swimmer is burned, they should immediately get out of the water and seek help from a doctor. Within half an hour (and sometimes even earlier) after meeting the tentacles of the cross jellyfish, symptoms appear: limbs go numb, pain seizes the lower back, breathing becomes difficult, nausea and constantly want to drink. The poison can continue its effect for up to 4 days until it leaves the body.

Number “five” - giant cyanea (hairy cyanea, “lion’s mane”)

Meet the most big jellyfish: the diameter of its dome exceeds two meters and the length of the tentacles is up to thirty-seven meters!

The giant's habitat is cold or moderately cold waters ( northern seas Atlantic and Pacific Oceans, Arctic seas). You can also meet it off the Australian coast. She is not comfortable in warm waters and even when she gets there, she is not able to grow more than 50 centimeters.

Her appearance depends on the size. Thus, small specimens of these jellyfish are yellow-brown or orange in color. More impressive cyanens have inclusions of brown, scarlet and purple colors.

Why is it called "lion's mane"? Look at the photo. Numerous tentacles resemble the tangled mane of the king of beasts. But stinging cells are unknown to this predator, which cannot be said about its marine “double”.

Cyanea tentacles contain a strong poison, but not fatal to humans (only one death has been recorded in the world). Contact with jellyfish is dangerous allergic reaction, which is accompanied by a painful rash on the body.

Of course, you didn't intend to swim in the company of jellyfish. But, as they say, God protects those who are careful!

One of the most mysterious inhabitants sea ​​depths, arousing interest and a certain fear, jellyfish can rightly be called. Who are they, where did they come from, what varieties are there in the world, what is their life cycle, are they as dangerous as popular rumor says - I want to know about all this for sure.

Jellyfish appeared more than 650 million years ago, making them one of the oldest organisms on Earth.

About 95% of the jellyfish's body is water, which is also their habitat. Most jellyfish live in salt water, although there are species that prefer fresh water. Jellyfish - phase life cycle representatives of the genus Medusozoa, "sea jelly" alternates with a nonmotile asexual phase of nonmotile polyps, from which they are formed by budding after maturation.

The name was introduced in the 18th century by Carl Linnaeus, who saw in these strange organisms a certain resemblance to the mythical Gorgon Medusa, due to the presence of tentacles that flutter like hair. With their help, the jellyfish catches small organisms that serve as food for it. The tentacles may look like long or short, pointed threads, but they are all equipped with stinging cells that stun prey and make hunting easier.

Life cycle of scyphoids: 1-11 - asexual generation (polyp); 11-14 - sexual generation (jellyfish).

Glowing jellyfish

The one who saw it glow dark night sea ​​water, he is unlikely to be able to forget this spectacle: myriads of lights illuminate deep sea, shimmer like diamonds. The reason for this amazing phenomenon The smallest planktonic organisms, including jellyfish, serve. The phosphoric jellyfish is considered one of the most beautiful. It is not found very often, living in the benthic zone near the coasts of Japan, Brazil, and Argentina.

The diameter of the luminous jellyfish umbrella can reach 15 centimeters. Living in the dark depths, jellyfish are forced to adapt to conditions, provide themselves with food, so as not to disappear altogether as a species. An interesting fact is that the bodies of jellyfish do not have muscle fibers and cannot resist water flows.

Since the slow jellyfish, swimming at the will of the current, cannot keep up with mobile crustaceans, small fish or other planktonic inhabitants, they have to use a trick and force them to swim up to the predatory mouth opening. And the best bait in the darkness of the bottom space is light.

The body of a luminous jellyfish contains a pigment - luciferin, which is oxidized under the influence of a special enzyme - luciferase. The bright light attracts victims like moths to a candle flame.

Some types glowing jellyfish, such as Rathkeya, Equorea, Pelagia live at the surface of the water, and, gathering in large quantities, they literally make the sea burn. The amazing ability to emit light has interested scientists. Phosphors have been successfully isolated from the genome of jellyfish and introduced into the genomes of other animals. The results turned out to be quite unusual: for example, mice whose genotype was changed in this way began to grow green hairs.

Poisonous jellyfish - Sea Wasp

Today, more than three thousand jellyfish are known, and many of them are far from harmless to humans. All types of jellyfish have stinging cells “charged” with poison. They help to paralyze the victim and deal with him without any problems. Without exaggeration, for divers, swimmers, and fishermen, a jellyfish called the Sea Wasp is represented. The main habitat of such jellyfish is warm tropical waters, there are especially many of them off the coast of Australia and Oceania.

Transparent bodies of pale blue color are invisible in warm water quiet sandy bays. The small size, namely, up to forty centimeters in diameter, is also not attractive special attention. Meanwhile, the poison of one individual is enough to send about fifty people to heaven. Unlike their phosphorescent counterparts, sea wasps can change direction of movement, easily finding careless swimmers. The poison that enters the victim’s body causes paralysis of smooth muscles, including the respiratory tract. Being in shallow water, a person has a small chance of being saved, but even if health care was provided in a timely manner and the person did not die from suffocation; deep ulcers form at the sites of the “bites”, causing severe pain and not healing for many days.

Dangerous little ones - Irukandji jellyfish

Tiny Irukandji jellyfish, described by Australian Jack Barnes in 1964, have a similar effect on the human body, with the only difference being that the degree of damage is not so deep. He, as a true scientist who stands up for science, experienced the effect of poison not only on himself, but also on his own son. Symptoms of poisoning - severe headache and muscle pain, convulsions, nausea, drowsiness, loss of consciousness - are not fatal in themselves, but the main risk is a sharp increase in blood pressure from a man who personally met Irukandji. If the victim has problems with cardiovascular system, then the probability of death is quite high. The size of this baby is about 4 centimeters in diameter, but its thin spindle-shaped tentacles reach 30-35 centimeters in length.

Bright beauty - Physalia jellyfish

Another very dangerous inhabitant of tropical waters for humans is Physalia - the Sea Boat. Her umbrella is painted in bright colors: blue, violet, purple and floats on the surface of the water, so it is visible from afar. Entire colonies of attractive sea “flowers” ​​attract gullible tourists, beckoning them to pick them up as quickly as possible. This is where it lurks main danger: hidden under the water are long, up to several meters, tentacles equipped with a huge number of stinging cells. The poison acts very quickly, causing severe burns, paralysis and disturbances in the functioning of the cardiovascular, respiratory and central nervous systems. If the meeting took place on great depth or simply far from the shore, then its outcome may be the saddest.

Giant Jellyfish Nomura - Lion's Mane

The real giant is the Nomura Bell, also called Lion's mane for some time external resemblance with the king of beasts. The diameter of the dome can reach two meters, and the weight of such a “baby” reaches two hundred kilos. Lives on Far East, in the coastal waters of Japan, off the coast of Korea and China.

Huge hairy ball getting into fishing nets, damages them, causing damage to the fishermen and striking them themselves when they try to free themselves. Even if their venom is not fatal to humans, meetings with the “Lion’s Mane” rarely take place in a friendly atmosphere.

Cyanea is considered one of the largest jellyfish. Living in cold waters, it reaches largest sizes. The most gigantic specimen was discovered and described by scientists at the end of the 19th century in North America: its dome was 230 centimeters in diameter, and the length of the tentacles turned out to be 36.5 meters. There are a lot of tentacles, they are collected in eight groups, each of which has from 60 to 150 pieces. It is characteristic that the dome of the jellyfish is divided into eight segments, representing a kind of octagonal star. Fortunately, they do not live in the Azov and Black Seas, so you don’t have to worry about them when going to the sea to relax.

Depending on the size, the color also changes: large specimens are painted bright purple or purple, smaller ones - in orange, pink or beige. Cyaneas live in surface waters, rarely descending into the depths. The poison is not dangerous to humans, causing only an unpleasant burning sensation and blisters on the skin.

Using jellyfish in cooking

The number of jellyfish living in the seas and oceans Globe truly enormous, and not a single species is in danger of extinction. Their use is limited by mining capabilities, but people have long been using beneficial features jellyfish for medicinal purposes and enjoy them taste qualities in cooking. In Japan, Korea, China, Indonesia, Malaysia and other countries, jellyfish have long been eaten, calling them “crystal meat”. Its benefits are due to the high content of protein, albumin, vitamins and amino acids, and microelements. And when properly prepared, it has a very refined taste.

Jellyfish “meat” is added to salads and desserts, sushi and rolls, soups and main courses. In a world where population growth is steadily threatening the onset of famine, especially in underdeveloped countries, protein from jellyfish can be a good help in solving this issue.

Jellyfish in medicine

The use of jellyfish for making medicines is typical, in to a greater extent, in those countries where their consumption has long ceased to be a subject of surprise. For the most part, these are countries located in coastal areas where jellyfish are directly harvested.

In medicine, preparations containing processed jellyfish bodies are used to treat infertility, obesity, baldness and gray hair. The poison extracted from stinging cells helps to cope with diseases of the ENT organs and normalize blood pressure.

Modern scientists are struggling to find medicine, capable of defeating cancerous tumors, without excluding the possibility that jellyfish will also help in this difficult fight.