A rare
jellyfish has found its way over
the last few days up and down the Jersey Shore -- and it packs quite a sting.
“They've
been found up and down,” says Marine Biologist Liza Baskin. “We have reports from Sandy Hook all the way down past Ocean County
and really large numbers and a lot of people getting stung.”
Baskin
spent her Wednesday morning looking a mauve stinger jellyfish.
“Water is really flat right now, which means flat surf, but
it means signs the winds have changed direction,” says Baskin.
The jellies
eluded her today, but not Maggie McGuire, who saw them all week at SeaWatch
Beach in Manasquan.
“They’re
all over the water, they’re pretty interesting too,” says McGuire. “The
boys have been catching them.”
It isn't
your typical red jellyfish floating in the waves. The jellyfish is known as a
mauve stinger. Typically, they stay far out to sea, but recent onshore
winds and warm water brought them and left bathers with a painful sting.
They
look like they're a few inches long with a bulbous and spotted appearance, and
what makes them unusual is every part of its body is covered in stinging cells.
They
deliver a more powerful sting than the common lions mane species we are
familiar with. Marine biologist Liza Baskin explains why the creatures are
making their presence known on the shore.
If
you happen to get stung, Baskin says the best treatment is old fashioned
vinegar.
Baskin and
other marine biologists are looking for any live specimens of the jellyfish. If
you happen to safely catch one, you can contact them on their Facebook
group --
New Jersey Jelly Spotters.