Marine Life My first jellyfish sting

[John the Pom]

Got stung on the palms of my hands a few weeks ago in Sydney when pulling up the deco weight line, probably a bluebottle but never saw anything. Took about a week to scab and another week to sort of disappear. We are used to getting stung here, common occurrence.

Some of the Northern Beaches were visited by small jellyfish we call "jimbles" a few weeks ago. Quite a few surfers got stung.

I was diving off one of the beaches in summer, wearing a full wetsuit, gloves, booties, and a hood. A bluebottle still managed to get me, on the wrist and around the neck!

I know this confusing for British divers, because, in Britain, a "bluebottle" is a sort of blowfly. But here, "bluebottle" refers to a kind of small "Portuguese man-o-war" stinger - an essential part of the Aussie beach experience!

 

[Shasta_man]

I've seen more stings happen on a Caribbean liveaboard i was on than the Pacific trips i have been on so I treated it like a guarantee for the rest of the Caribbean trip. My dive buddy described hanging on the bar below the boat and seeing a jelly float over and zap him in the hand before he could move. Another diver on the same dive got full tentacles on the side of her head and neck with clear marks. She was f'ed up for a while.

I always wear a fullsuit for this reason as well as any other incidental contacts. Not fully protected but at least somewhat. I have seen some enormous jellies off Monterey, CA.

 

[Kay Dee]

While this jelly's sting might not have been at the top of the Richter scale, it was that little crab you had to stay clear of!