NAHANT — An unusual creature found washed up on Nahant Beach this weekend meant quite a surprise for some local beachgoers.
A Lion’s Mane jellyfish sighting Friday afternoon prompted the Department of Conservation and Recreation to issue a purple-flag warning, which indicates a dangerous animal is in the water.
“They are pretty scary,” beachgoer Jeval Vlumsack told NBCBoston. “Hopefully none of the kids get stung, that is my biggest worry.”
Lion’s Mane jellyfish are the largest known species of jellyfish, with tentacles that can reach up to 120 feet. Although not typically fatal, a sting from one can pack quite a punch, and experts generally advise people to keep their distance.
According to oceana.org, this particular species prefers colder waters and might actually gravitate towards heavily populated areas.
“Scientific research has suggested that jellyfish actually thrive in areas that are affected by human activity,” the website says. “Overfishing, climate change and pollution have helped promote more frequent jellyfish swarms while reducing the jellies’ main predators and competitors and increasing their prey. These factors have created a favorable environment for this species, and few threats are known to the Lion’s Mane jellyfish or other jellies.”
Scientists, however, have been baffled by what they say seems to be the increasing size of Lion’s Mane jellyfish washing up on New England beaches in recent months.
In May, a jellyfish measuring nearly five feet across was found on Peaks Island in Maine.
“Over the last couple of years, the lion’s mane jellyfish have been getting startlingly large — the largest ones I’d seen were maybe one or two feet across,” biologist Nick Record of Bigelow Labs told NBCBoston. “Two years ago, I started getting a lot of reports that they were maybe three feet across. Then last year there was one monster up in Lamoine, Maine, that was four or five feet across.”
New England Aquarium’s Chris Doller told boston.cbslocal.com that the jellyfish are typically around the size of a dinner plate, but this year in particular has seen a huge number of larger ones getting close to beaches.
He emphasized that a sting from one isn’t pleasant.
“A Lion’s Mane jellyfish can have as many as a thousand or more tentacles and each one of those tentacles can pack a pretty good punch,” he said, warning that even a tentacle that breaks off can still sting anything that comes in contact.
“Most people don’t have a severe reaction to a jelly sting, but as we know even with bee stings, some people are really sensitive to those types of animals,” he said.
Warning flags were also posted at King’s Beach in Lynn as a precaution.
