Hundreds of jellyfish wash up on beach
JELLYFISH as far as the eye can see have washed up on a popular West Wales beach.
The large creatures were spotted on the sand at Cefn Sidan, Pembrey, on Monday.
Hundreds of barrel jellyfish, officially known as rhizostoma pulmo, can be seen all along the beach, ranging in size.
They seem to have travelled there in huge numbers, as they have washed up onto the sand just feet away from each other.
Paul Rowland couldn’t help but notice the jellyfish as he walked along the beach on Monday afternoon. He said there were hundreds, possibly thousands, of them altogether.
“They’re all along the tide line at really regular intervals, just a few feet apart,” he said.
“It’s a really long beach but you could just see them stretching out in both directions along the high water line as far as the eye could see.
“The biggest ones were probably a couple of feet across, translucent and slightly blue-ish in colour.”
It’s not the first time a large number of jellyfish have washed up at Cefn Sidan.
While the barrel jellyfish are harmless to humans, others that have appeared there can leave a nasty sting.
In 2017, a number of man o’war jellyfish were spotted on the sand there, which is part of Pembrey County Park. Their sting can paralyse fish and other small prey instantly and can, very rarely, be fatal to humans.
Jellyfish have a tendency to travel in large groups and, despite living in the sea, they are not very good swimmers. Because of this, they get carried along by currents in the water and end up on the beach.
The NHS said people should not treat the affected area with vinegar or urine, or apply ice to it.