Jellyfish - The Facts

[swbailey]

To regular visitors/residents to the beaches of Hua Hin.

Hi

I have browsed the forum to look for facts about Jellyfish. Its all very ancedotal and there is nothing about treating stings.

It would appear that you could spot Jellyfish all year round, but they only come near shore during rainy season, or times when it rains in dry season. Is this true.

Are there different types - stingers and non-stingers.

What should one have ready in the hotel or apartment if you are stung by a jellyfish. No point going out to buy the vinegar if you have already been stung.

If you were to swim in the sea every day for 1 hour what are the percentage chance of been stung during the rainy season. (and same question during the dry season).

What are the dangers of not treating a jellyfish sting. Ive read stories of scars. Are they true.

What are the dangers for a child of 2 years been stung by a jellyfish.

Have they ever considered nets in certain areas of Hua Hin.

Ive seen mention that Sai Noi is the nicest beach without jet-ski and jellyfish. Is this true. Where is Sai Noi (sorry if I have now advertised Sai Noi), but I dont think circulation of this topic will be huge.

Thank you to anyone who takes time to add a few facts about jellyfish.

Blamamber.

[fisherd3]

To regular visitors/residents to the beaches of Hua Hin.

Hi

I have browsed the forum to look for facts about Jellyfish. Its all very ancedotal and there is nothing about treating stings.

It would appear that you could spot Jellyfish all year round, but they only come near shore during rainy season, or times when it rains in dry season. Is this true.

Are there different types - stingers and non-stingers.

What should one have ready in the hotel or apartment if you are stung by a jellyfish. No point going out to buy the vinegar if you have already been stung.

If you were to swim in the sea every day for 1 hour what are the percentage chance of been stung during the rainy season. (and same question during the dry season).

What are the dangers of not treating a jellyfish sting. Ive read stories of scars. Are they true.

What are the dangers for a child of 2 years been stung by a jellyfish.

Have they ever considered nets in certain areas of Hua Hin.

Ive seen mention that Sai Noi is the nicest beach without jet-ski and jellyfish. Is this true. Where is Sai Noi (sorry if I have now advertised Sai Noi), but I dont think circulation of this topic will be huge.

Thank you to anyone who takes time to add a few facts about jellyfish.

Blamamber.

I have lived in Jamaica where Jelly fish appeared for a couple of months every year, so yes they are or can be seasonal, and yes there are very many different types of Jelly fish, and the first thing to do is to identify the level of danger the local type offers, as some are indeed very deadly like the box jelly fish in Northern Queensland you would be very foolish indeed to swim in the sea at times when they are about, because you are most likely a dead man if you get stung by one of those.

Others do not hurt too much , in Jamaica there was one about the size of a dinner plate and about 3" thick that did not have very long tentacles and kind of pulsated, that did not sting too badly the locals said they had been 'scratched' by it when they got stung, then there was also what they called the portugese man of war that tended to be very small a bit like an ice cream cone with sometimes quite long tentacles coming out the end. This one was a nightmare and I speak from experience of being stung on two occasions by it.

The skin reddens up and has small blisters presumebaly where the tentacles deposited the poison, in such a way that it does get into the body, this process is greatly enhanced if you scratch the afflicted area, but as you have a great compulsion to do so you probably will and assist the flow of the venom into the blood stream. It takes about an hour or more for the venom to start affecting you big time spreading from the bite site but, when it does it is extremely unpleasant and it is easy to think you could die in the near future ( I am sure some people do!) as the venom seems to visit each organ one by one and you can feel them being affected and you wonder when it will stop, all this time you really want to scratch the bite site and feel delirious and very hot and cold and itchy all over, all this last 2-3 hrs and then you start to come down and if it happenned on your morning swim by the afternoon you more or less feel back to normal.

I guess you're reaction will be governed by your fitness and personal reaction to the venom.

It is true that vinegar is supposed to cause the deposited venom to be washed from the skin it also true that in emergency urine has the same effect. I don't think it will altogether stop the process I described above but it may alleviate it, like you say you don't usually have vinegar to hand.

There are antidotes to jelly fish stings and the local hospital in an afflicted area should keep it in stock, so you could check this position in your area and maybe campaign for some if not available , if it is available the first thing you should do on being stung is go to hospital and get an injection.

Some jelly fish even small ones can have very long (6 feet or more) tentacles and it is possible to get wrapped up in them and be very badly stung indeed.

I used to swim a long way every morning, and you could not see these men of war all the time, they kind of fade in and out of view with the angle of the light in the water and some were very small about the size of a small pear, so I would not bank on avoiding them.

If they are about I would always now swim with a long sleeve T shirt on as you tend to swim into them shoulder/arm first.

I do however believe that avoiding being bitten when they are expected by not swimming is the sensible answer.

My ten bobs worth

Edited June 2, 2006 by fisherd3

[BambinA]

if you are attacted by Sea nettles, Chrysaora species...it will have a nightmare then

1 u need somebody pee on you ( oh yes.. i can't pee on yourself, neither do i )

2 grinded sea morning glory(Ipomoea pes - caprae (Lin.X Sweet)

) and applied it on

[PeaceBlondie]

I got stung about three days ago, fairly far out. Never saw the critter, but I surely felt him. When I got home, I peed in a shallow bucket and applied it on the sore. I think it really helped at the time.

The trouble with the rainy season idea is that last winter, there were thousands of large jellyfish of several species coming up on the beach for a month or two. Now that it's June, they seem to be returning. The ones we saw today were teensy, but does that mean they're hatching and growing?

There are brown, clear, white, blue specimens. Lately, there have also been tiny critters that sting or bite. My skin is suffering from mutliple bites, including mosquitos and sand flies and garden flies and who knows what else.

Moving back to Chiang Mai, I'll miss the beach when there are no jellyfish. I won't miss it when they are in there.

[monochaser]

I never heard of this before and I do like to swim quite a lot but haven't swum amidst Jellyfish since Long Island Sound some years ago. I try and stick with oceans and haven't seen many there. Just so I get this straight, if I go swimming in Hua Hin or like spot (Penang or wherever), make sure I have a friend closeby who can take a race horse piss on me if needed. thanks, got it

[taxexile]

never mind the jellyfish , i have just watched a man who catches small fish every morning in front of our condo with a hand thrown net land a 3 metre long grey snake. it was struggling to free itself from the net.

the fisherman stood well back ,then went to get a big stick and killed it.

[Arkady]

I was stung by a jelly fish in Hua Hin during the rainy season in June three years. I have encountered jelly fish throughout my life in various parts of the world and had never suffered more than a rash and moderate paid that was gone by the next morning without treatment. This time it was different. I never saw the culprit as the water was murky but I felt something like a severe electric shock on my thigh. I don't know if water morning glory, meat tenderiser, pee or vinegar, the popular folk remedies would have worked as I had not read anything about jelly fish stings at that time, so didn't try any of them. The pain remained severe for several hours and I went to a clinic in Hua Hin where the doctor gave me some cream to rub in and told me it would go away in three or four days. After a week it was getting worse and started oozing pus and forming scabs. I went to BNH Hospital and was told I had shingles and prescribed some very expensive cream and tablets which I used for a few weeks but they didn't seem to help at all. The jelly fish wound did not heal properly for three months and frequently caused bouts of pain while walking when pus oozed through my trouser leg causing a revolting wet patch. Three years later I have a scarred patch four inches across which is fortunately not too visible. I have never swum in the sea in Hua Hin again since that day and properly never will. The place I stay there has a nice pool so there seems no point in taking the risk of three months of pain and mess.

There are thousands of types of jelly fish and I have no idea which species attacked me. However, I am sure it is around Hua Hin in quantity particularly in the rainy season. Since being stung I have heard many other similar stories. A friend's young daughter has permanent scarring on her stomach as a result of a Hua Hin jelly fish sting and I heard of a young Thai woman who suffered a bad sting on her face.

To the poster who asked whether jelly fish could be a danger to his two year old child. I think the answer should now be obvious if you have read this. I urge you take good care of your child and recommend the use of a swimming pool while in Hua Hin.

[BigBikeBKK]

Amazing- that last post is EXACTLY what happened to me about 6 weeks ago while surfing at Laem Mae Pim beach near Rayong.

I was standing in shallow murky water, perhaps 4-5 feet deep. Felt something brush my leg, which I first thought was trash- there's a lot of crap in the water these days... Then I felt the sting. Unfortunately I never saw what stung me.

I've been stung before in Japan and Hawaii and Phuket, but this one was different- the pain more intense, but oddly more localized.

Rather than a long welt which is what I usually get from the tentacles of a jelly, this sting left a short 3-4 inch long half inch wide "wound". Usually it takes a while for the sting to become visible, but this one became red and extremely painful almost immediately.

I got stung on the middle of my calf. I didn't have any vinegar on hand so I did the only thing I could which was a nice warm "golden shower". I'm not sure any of the locals saw me pissing on myself, and quite frankly I was in so much pain at the time that I didn't give a fok.

So anyway- I didn't think more of it, as I'd never heard that there were any dangerous jellies in Thailand.

The pain was bearable so I kept surfing and went home.

But the dam_n wound wouldn't heal. Itchy and oozing, and discolored around the edges it was not a pretty sight. No pain- in fact other than the itching most of my calf was completely numb.

I swam a lot in our pool, thinking that the chlorine might help keep the wound clean- don't know if there's any merit to that belief...

I waited about a week and things seemed to be getting worse, so I went to Samitivej hospital in Bangkok. I've always believed Samitivej to be one of the better hospitals in Thailand.

I told them I thought I was stung by a jellyfish. The nurse thought it was so funny and taught me how to say jellyfish in Thai: "Mangaprune" (My spelling could be WAY off)

They cleaned up the wound, told me it was infected, gave me antibiotics, iodine and antibiotic cream and told me I should be better in a week or so.

Well, I kept the wound clean, ate all my meds, and after a week passed it was still a nasty oozing mess.

Went to a local clinic near my house to get it cleaned again, and the doc put me on another round of antibiotics, and now, finally, about 6 weeks after I was stung, the wound is dry, but still ugly- I'll have a pretty weird looking scar and there's still a lot of discoloration around the wound.

Anyway- I'm still not 100% sure what stung me. It had to be some kind of jellyfish, and I've done a lot of reading about jellyfish since this whole thing started.

Apparently there are many varieties of box jellyfish, some more deadly than others. If I had to guess I'd say I was stung by some kind of box jellyfish.

Moral of the story- add some vinegar to your first aid kit! If you are stung, don't expect Thai doctors to know much about treating jellyfish stings. I'm not dissing Thai docs, I just think it's something they probably almost never have to deal with.

And hey... maybe that's why all the locals swim in jeans and T-shirts... Hmmm...

Surf's Up!

[jmricca]

this is my big issue..... of course, no need to fall into paranoia but the big scars on my forearm remind me of what happened in Hua Hin in April..... If anybody wants to see the extent of damage it does, just look at the enclosed pixs.

I am not claiming anything about the species, but surely the danger is there. The very least I want to achieve is not to scare people off but raise awareness. Just simple : in doubt, seek for medical advice immediately.

Those incidents are rare but look since Andrew reported what happened to his 4yrs old son in Koh Mak, how many cases ?

This will always be a case for bad luck, wrong place at the wrong time.... and statistically more people will die every year from falling coconuts.

Believe it or not, I got stung twice in 4 months, and now we make sure we have vinegar in the beach bag. If people could at least get this, this would be an accomplishment.

Same does apply to medical authorities. I know 2 persons who have been struggling to find the right medical support even in reputable hospitals. Nobody to blame here, how would suspect this up until the numbers of cases get high enough to start doing something.

jm

[johnnyk]

That is very nasty, I hope it wasn't as painful as it looks.

Best wishes for a full recovery.

[Cobalt60]

Best plan is to keep out of their home and they wont come into yours.

Swimming pools are nice, dont get so many in there.

[BigBikeBKK]

The sting I got near Rayong a couple of months ago is about healed, but it's left a nasty scar.

Been surfing the past 10 days in Phuket and there are THOUSANDS of tiny jellies in the water, but fortunately they're not stinging- just kinda gross is all Hope they don't invite their big brothers!

[klikster]

Thai friend has severe scarring on his arms where a Sea Wasp aka Box Jellyfish stung him many years ago in Cha am. They do come around.

Just hope that those nasty little nearly invisible creature don't make it all the way here from Oz. Search for "Irugandji". As they are swimmers rather than drifters, they have already been found around Palau.

Both the Sea Wasp and the Irugandji can kill ..

[Mapguy]

I have seen meat tenderizer as effective to some degree if applied quickly.

[Samuian]

Nasty wounds!

Never saw anything like it!

There was a thread on Jellyfish around already - vinegar yes, ...?

Yes, look here:Swedish Girl died..

and more here:

to regular visitors to Hua Hin:

Pattaya:

some more:

it seems to occur rather often in certain areas, I have heard about contacts around the west/northwest coast of Ko Phangan, they seem to occur only around rainy season, when the seas get ruffled up...

May be a thread like this could be pinned?

Edited August 26, 2008 by Samuian

[percy2]

Best advice is when swimming in the sea always cover up.

If you swin in the sea every day eventually you will be stung by a jellyfish. Depending on the type of jelly fish you could have mild or severe symptoms.

A sting from the wrong kind of jelly fish can kill.

Its pointless describing the very dangerous ones as we have seen from this post you rarely see what stings you.

When I learnt to dive I would go in with only shorts. I got a sting from a unseen JF around my ankle which didn't heal for months , I still have the scar years later.

Now when i want to dive or snorkel I completely cover up. Wet suit , gloves , hood and booties. The only part of my skin that is exposed are my lips and cheeks and I still get stung (petroleum jelly helps as a protective barrier).

If I want to swim I do so in a pool. If I really needed to swim in the sea daily I would get one of those Lycra skins.

If I took children into the seas I would insist on them being covered up.

Cheers

[percy2]

Nasty wounds!

Never saw anything like it!

There was a thread on Jellyfish around already - vinegar yes, but if i recall correctly "hot water"...?

There's differences of opinion on the effectiveness of hot water as a treatment.

I spoke with a Doctor about this. His take was that for the water to have any effect on the toxins from the JF it would have to be hot enough to start breaking down the proteins in the toxin. The offset of that would be it would have to be hot enough to break down the proteins in the tissue affected.

I'm not sure either way.

Cheers

[Samuian]

I spoke with a Doctor about this. His take was that for the water to have any effect on the toxins from the JF it would have to be hot enough to start breaking down the proteins in the toxin. The offset of that would be it would have to be hot enough to break down the proteins in the tissue affected.

I'm not sure either way.

Cheers

So there was something about it... think it's the "new Australian" way...believe it's somewhere in the threads i've linked to.. just don't have the time right now!

And the "Pak Boong Talay" (Beach-Sea Morning Glory) seems to be a local remedy... but don't know exactly how to apply/ make use of it..

[PeaceBlondie]

As requested, the topic is now pinned. We need to make some more pinned topics as well. Please

[PeaceBlondie]

As requested, the topic is now pinned. We need to make some more pinned topics as well. Please

[PeaceBlondie]

As requested, the topic is now pinned. We need to make some more pinned topics as well. Please

[PeaceBlondie]

As requested, the topic is now pinned. We need to make some more pinned topics as well. Please PM me for ideas on restaurants, activities around Hua Hin and Cha Am, etc.

[percy2]

Pinned 4 times!

It must be full of holes now

Cheers

[percy2]

Surely this post caters to all seaside resorts and nut just Hua Hin.

If it should be pinned anywhere it should be pinned in the Health section.

Cheers

[BEENTHEREDONETHAT]

If you don't have a wetsuit, pantyhose will protect your lower body and a long sleeve T-shirt your upper body.

Right now there are heaps of them off Cha Am, the fishermen are scooping them up with nets, must be catching 1,000's from the look of it.

[taxexile]

lets just have a jellyfish forum

[percy2]

lets just have a jellyfish forum

[BigBikeBKK]

Right now there are heaps of them off Cha Am, the fishermen are scooping them up with nets, must be catching 1,000's from the look of it.

Heaps of pantyhose? So that's where they come from. Kinda like a sea sponge, huh?

I hope the fisherman can get good prices at market.

[klikster]

And the "Pak Boong Talay" (Beach-Sea Morning Glory) seems to be a local remedy... but don't know exactly how to apply/ make use of it..

The way the locals showed me, it's used more to prevent stings and "sea lice" than as a treatment. They crush the leaves by rolling it between their palms then wipe it on the body .. especially around they eyes and face.

[tonybuxton2]

The large jelly fish only give a mild sting. Put a little ammonia on it for relief. However some people are allergic to jellyfish stings and can get very ill from them. The very small Portuguese man-o-war is terrible. It is iridescent blue with long tentacles. The pain is very severe so you must get medical treatment, usually anti histamine injections. Fortunately quite rare but I have seen the odd one washed up on the beach. Frankly I don't like swimming when there are a lot of jelly fish about. I prefer my pool

To regular visitors/residents to the beaches of Hua Hin.

Hi

I have browsed the forum to look for facts about Jellyfish. Its all very ancedotal and there is nothing about treating stings.

It would appear that you could spot Jellyfish all year round, but they only come near shore during rainy season, or times when it rains in dry season. Is this true.

Are there different types - stingers and non-stingers.

What should one have ready in the hotel or apartment if you are stung by a jellyfish. No point going out to buy the vinegar if you have already been stung.

If you were to swim in the sea every day for 1 hour what are the percentage chance of been stung during the rainy season. (and same question during the dry season).

What are the dangers of not treating a jellyfish sting. Ive read stories of scars. Are they true.

What are the dangers for a child of 2 years been stung by a jellyfish.

Have they ever considered nets in certain areas of Hua Hin.

Ive seen mention that Sai Noi is the nicest beach without jet-ski and jellyfish. Is this true. Where is Sai Noi (sorry if I have now advertised Sai Noi), but I dont think circulation of this topic will be huge.

Thank you to anyone who takes time to add a few facts about jellyfish.

Blamamber.

I have lived in Jamaica where Jelly fish appeared for a couple of months every year, so yes they are or can be seasonal, and yes there are very many different types of Jelly fish, and the first thing to do is to identify the level of danger the local type offers, as some are indeed very deadly like the box jelly fish in Northern Queensland you would be very foolish indeed to swim in the sea at times when they are about, because you are most likely a dead man if you get stung by one of those.

Others do not hurt too much , in Jamaica there was one about the size of a dinner plate and about 3" thick that did not have very long tentacles and kind of pulsated, that did not sting too badly the locals said they had been 'scratched' by it when they got stung, then there was also what they called the portugese man of war that tended to be very small a bit like an ice cream cone with sometimes quite long tentacles coming out the end. This one was a nightmare and I speak from experience of being stung on two occasions by it.

The skin reddens up and has small blisters presumebaly where the tentacles deposited the poison, in such a way that it does get into the body, this process is greatly enhanced if you scratch the afflicted area, but as you have a great compulsion to do so you probably will and assist the flow of the venom into the blood stream. It takes about an hour or more for the venom to start affecting you big time spreading from the bite site but, when it does it is extremely unpleasant and it is easy to think you could die in the near future ( I am sure some people do!) as the venom seems to visit each organ one by one and you can feel them being affected and you wonder when it will stop, all this time you really want to scratch the bite site and feel delirious and very hot and cold and itchy all over, all this last 2-3 hrs and then you start to come down and if it happenned on your morning swim by the afternoon you more or less feel back to normal.

I guess you're reaction will be governed by your fitness and personal reaction to the venom.

It is true that vinegar is supposed to cause the deposited venom to be washed from the skin it also true that in emergency urine has the same effect. I don't think it will altogether stop the process I described above but it may alleviate it, like you say you don't usually have vinegar to hand.

There are antidotes to jelly fish stings and the local hospital in an afflicted area should keep it in stock, so you could check this position in your area and maybe campaign for some if not available , if it is available the first thing you should do on being stung is go to hospital and get an injection.

Some jelly fish even small ones can have very long (6 feet or more) tentacles and it is possible to get wrapped up in them and be very badly stung indeed.

I used to swim a long way every morning, and you could not see these men of war all the time, they kind of fade in and out of view with the angle of the light in the water and some were very small about the size of a small pear, so I would not bank on avoiding them.

If they are about I would always now swim with a long sleeve T shirt on as you tend to swim into them shoulder/arm first.

I do however believe that avoiding being bitten when they are expected by not swimming is the sensible answer.

My ten bobs worth