I had never in my life seen one of these before, until the other day. Although I’d never laid eyes on one, I was able immediately to identify the translucent creature lying on the sand at my feet: a Portuguese Man O’ War. It was immediately identifiable by its inflated float.
The system of flags flying at the beach indicated, with its two flags, one red and one black, that yes, the water was rough, but also yes, there was stinging marine life about:
The flags didn’t lie: there were plenty of stinging Men O’ War on the beach, baby ones, only about 4 inches long at most. Like this:
Many of those I saw on the beach had long, long tentacles of a stunning dark teal color. You can get a look at some on the right side of the creature above.
I especially like this image, because it shows the “sail” on the top of the inflated pneumatophore. I think that the gathered blue material on the u[per right is the collection of parts that usually dangle below the creature as it floats.
When I saw these on the beach, I decided to learn more about them.
I learned, to my astonishment, that a Portuguese Man O’ War, named after a sailing ship under full sail, is not a jellyfish, and in fact is not one creature… but a number of them, all living together as a colony.
According to National Geographic, it “is made up of a colony of organisms working together. […] it comprises four separate (types of organisms). It gets its name from the uppermost (one), a gas-filled bladder, or pneumatophore, which sits above the water and somewhat resembles an old warship at full sail.” The pneumatophore is filled with carbon monoxide, nitrogen, and argon.
The smaller units hang from the pneumatophore in clusters. The second kind are the tentacles, “long, thin tendrils that can extend 165 feet in length below the surface (and which) are covered in venom-filled nematocysts to paralyze and kill fish and other small creatures.”
The other two types of organisms are the gastrozooid, which takes care of feeding, and the gonodendron, which takes care of reproduction.
So a Portuguese Man O’ War isn’t so much an “it” as a “them.”
Not only that, but it has no ability to move on its own. The pneumatophore is a floating device driven by the wind and currents. According to Wikipedia, it “can be oriented towards the left or the right (dimorphism), The ‘left-handed’ (ones) sail to the right of the wind, while the ‘right-handed’ (ones) sail to the left. The wind will always push the two types …in different directions, so at most half the population will be pushed towards the coast.” This is thought to be “an adaptation that prevents the entire population from being washed on shore to die.”
I’m amazed by all of this. The thing is a floating city that delivers a sting.
It sure is beautiful, though:
The one on the left here isn’t the one I saw on the beach today, but a better image, from Pixabay. The one in the image at left is a mauve color; the ones I saw today were an ethereal shade of blue.
Below are a couple of shots of the ones from today, lying on the sand at St. Andrew’s State Park in Panama City, Florida.
