Is the monk hat jellyfish really poisonous?

The monk hat jellyfish gets its name because it is shaped like the hat of a monk, and because its sac-shaped part resembles a 16th century Portuguese warship, it is called a Portuguese warship jellyfish. It lives in tropical oceans and is often blown to the beach by the wind or moves with the current. It feeds on tiny organisms and organic matter. Let's take a look at whether the monk hat jellyfish is really poisonous.

Is the monk hat jellyfish really poisonous?

The weapon of the monk hat jellyfish is the tentacle, and it is the tiny stinging cells in the tentacle that secrete the deadly toxin. although the toxin secreted by a single stinging cell is negligible, the toxin accumulated by thousands of stinging cells is as intense as any venomous snake in the world today. The toxin secreted by it belongs to neurotoxin, and the effect of toxin will gradually increase with the passage of time. In addition to suffering severe pain, the injured will also experience a sudden drop in blood pressure, dyspnea, gradual loss of consciousness, systemic shock and so on. Eventually, he will die of pulmonary circulatory failure.

The stinging incident of the monk hat jellyfish

In 1964, Kleiman, a retired businessman, was stung by a monk hat jellyfish while swimming. Although he tried his best to escape to the beach, he was unconscious and failed to come back to life despite the efforts of doctors.

In 2000, 68% of swimmers stung by monk hat jellyfish died, a considerable number of 32% of the survivors were disabled as a result, and a few lucky ones were able to escape from the claws of this jellyfish.

In 2008, the British coast was invaded by a highly poisonous hat jellyfish. A 7-year-old boy was stung in the leg by the hat jellyfish while playing by the sea. His parents immediately took him to hospital. Witnesses said the boy had been howling in pain since the attack.

What if I get stung by a monk's hat jellyfish?

1. Remove the tentacles: first of all, if the tentacles of the jellyfish are still hanging on the skin, try to remove them, but make sure that the injured person does not move, wear gloves to remove them under certain conditions, or gently separate the tentacles from the skin with thick clothes, tweezers, sticks, etc.

2. Rinse with sea water: then rinse the stinging area with sea water to inhibit the activity of unemitted thorn cells on the skin, such as fresh water has the opposite effect. Any move to change the salt concentration balance of the solution inside and outside the thorn cell may stimulate the thorn sac to eject and release more venom.

3. Scraping cells: if possible, use a knife or something like a razor or card to gently separate the prickle cells from the skin, and smear them with shaving bubbles or soap foam before shaving. Rinse again with sea water, vinegar or salt water solution after scraping.

4. take medicine: finally, let the stung area dry naturally, take some antihistamine drugs such as diphenhydramine, or apply hydrocortisone cream, wash the open wound every day in the follow-up treatment, and apply antibiotic ointment to prevent bacterial infection.