Death by Jellyfish Sting

JellyFish Facts
Jellyfish Safety
Death By Jellyfish Sting

Not all Jellyfish stings are deadly; most of them aren't even harmful to us humans in anyway. Out of the two hundred different species they happen to exist all around the world in, only a few are considered to be lethal, even if you were to have a small contact with them. They all look the same to the normal human eye in low light situations under foggy water. Jellyfish doesn't have any organs or a vertebra like most of the life forms and nor do they have full control of their movement. They are usually present in groups and occupy the tropical oceans in high numbers during the summer seasons. They travel around the world with the help from ocean currents and winds. They exist in high numbers in the oceans around Florida, Malaysia, Australia, Hawaii, Philippines and other tropical locations.

So if you are planning on going for a swim during your tropical island vacation, be sure to look for the warning boards mentioning a no swim zone or even talking to the locals and getting a general idea of the oceans is a good thing. Prevention surely is better than cure here when some people have described the sting of a jelly fish to be "like a lightning striking down on you" to "the feeling of a hundreds of needles piercing you". Jellyfishes do not want to attack you; they are not after you either. They generally feed on zooplankton and do so using their long tentacles. All Jelly fishes do sting if you happen to get too close to their tentacles; it's just that not all of the stings transfer venom into your bloodstream. There are also cases of toxins affecting you months after the incident, if you haven't sought professional medical assistance right after the first sting.

The most deadly and lethal Jellyfishes out there in the maximum numbers are the Box Jellyfishes. These creatures are known for at least one death every year in Australia, as their venom is powerful enough to kill a man in less than 3 minutes. There are around 30 different species of the Box Jellyfish around the world and all of them are venomous as the other. There are up to 10,000 reported stings every year in Australia alone. Philippines report an annual death of 20 to 40 people in the oceans surrounding them.

The exact number of deaths per year around the world is still not exactly known, but they definitely are responsible for more deaths worldwide than crocodiles and sharks put together. Approximately around 150 million people get stung by these creatures all over the world, but the highest casualties are reported in the Indo-Pacific region. Most of the stings can be dealt with immediate medical help, but that's not the case if there are multiple stings by many venomous Jellyfishes. Time is of the very essence after the first sting and getting out of the water is the best thing to do. For more information on these venomous creatures and their effects please do read our article on Jellyfish Deaths

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Written by Nathan Dickerson and Sudarsana Sinha.