All Things Gook: CRITTERS

'Sea wasps' blamed for rash of painful stings
By IVONA LERMAN (ivona.lerman@news-jrnl.com)
Environment Writer
NEW SMYRNA BEACH -- A box-shaped jellyfish that may have stung hundreds of swimmers here last weekend seems to belong to a group of some of the most venomous jellyfish in the world-- known as sea wasps. This "sea wasp" was captured at Smyrna Dunes Park in New Smyrna Beach on Wednesday. According to marine biologist Bruce Jaildagian of the Marine Discovery Center, jellyfish like these are likely responsible for the recent spate of stings along area beaches.

The rash of stings hit bathers in New Smyrna Beach Saturday and Sunday, and more than 1,000 stings were reported earlier this month along Volusia County's shoreline. The most painful stings likely came from the tentacles of sea wasps.

The good news is that the sea wasps found here are most likely native to the Atlantic Ocean and not as dangerous as their relatives in Australia, said Monty Graham, a jellyfish expert at the Dauphin Island Sea Lab in Alabama.

Australian sea wasps are considered the most dangerous marine animals. A single jellyfish has enough venom to kill 60 people in three minutes. The pain of the sting is so excruciating, most people drown before reaching shore. Local biologists got worried about the origin of the jellyfish swimming off the coast here when a resident brought a live specimen to the Marine Discovery Center in New Smyrna Beach on Wednesday. It looked very similar to the deadly jellyfish native to Australia.

Calls to leading experts were made, and several hours later, Graham told locals that the species they have in hand is probably one of the less dangerous species native to the Atlantic Ocean. He said he will look at photos of the jellyfish this week and try to identify the exact species.

"The situation is not life-threatening," Graham said. "But all (sea wasps) sting painfully."

Sea wasps are also called box jellies and are recognized by a cube-shaped bell. They are smaller and more transparent than other jellyfish and harder to spot in the water.Joe Wooden, a deputy chief with Volusia County Beach Patrol, said there might have been a similar outbreak of sea wasps six or seven years ago but the identity was never confirmed. He said box jellies have also been the main suspects in a majority of stings in recent weeks. "The jellyfish we have now are extremely potent," he said. "People complain of pain, swelling and continued irritation for several days."

Beach patrol officials said the number of stings has subsided since Monday, but possibly only because there are fewer people on the beach. Graham said sea wasps have powerful venom because they use it to knock out larger prey such as shrimp and fish. Other jellyfish feed mostly on plankton and fish eggs.

THE CARIBBEAN MONK SEAL (MONACHUS TROPICALIS)

At one time, Caribbean, or West Indian, monk seals inhabited the Caribbean Sea, northwest to the Gulf of Mexico, as well as from the Bahamas to the Yucatan Peninsula, south along the Central American coast and east to the northern Antilles. Many records from the southeastern United States also exist. Observing Caribbean 'sea wolves' (what they were also called) on the coast of Santo Domingo in 1494, Columbus promptly ordered his crew to kill eight of the animals for food, paving the way for exploitation of the species by the European's coming to the new world. The slaughter continued up until the 20th century, with hunters sometimes killing as many as a hundred seals in a night. Caribbean monk seals were also killed by scientists for museum collections, and the last confirmed sighting occurred off Seranilla Bank in 1952.