Jellyfish panic along Mumbai beaches

Reportedly over 150 people were injured after scores of blue bottle jellyfish, also known as Portuguese man-of-war, were spotted these days across the beaches of Mumbai.

This is causing panic and fear among the people who visit beaches for livelihood.

Reports said several people were injured and left in pain after the venomous jellyfish attacked them. The Jellyfishes have long tentacles, which enter the body and deliver an excruciatingly painful sting. The venomous sting can kill fish but not humans.

The blue bottle jellyfishes are generally seen in Mumbai during the mid-monsoon season every year, but this time they were spotted in unusually large numbers.

This marine species belongs to the Physaliidae family and is commonly found in the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. The blue bottle jellyfish is not a single animal, but a colony of four kinds of highly modified zooids that are dependent on one another for survival.

An announcement of caution has been released by the officials after multiple instances of attack by the jellyfish were reported in the last few days. Even though the presence of Jelly fishes are common for these areas in monsoon, this time apparently it has turned into huge number.