Record numbers of beautiful but dangerous Portuguese Man o' War siphonophores have washed up on a beach in Cornwall, UK. The creatures were seen on a beach near Perranporth on September 12, and have also been spotted on the beaches of Wales. The Cornwall Wildlife Trust say they recorded over 140 of the creatures on their beaches, compared to the previous record of 40 in 2009.
Their venomous tentacles can deliver a painful sting, which can be fatal in rare exceptions. These floating hydrozoans use an air sack as a sail to drift around the sea, but despite their appearance and reputation for stinging, they are technically not jellyfish. They are actually a mixture of four creatures working symbiotically. Beautiful though they are, their stinging tentacles can grow to 30ft or more and should be avoided at all costs.
Find out more about these fascinating creatures in the video below.
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