After spotting Portuguese man of war, a jelly-like marine organism, on the Baga beach of Goa, state govt. has issued an advisory for tourists to stay away from the sea.
About:
Scientific Name: Physalia physalis.
Common name: Portuguese Man O’ War; Blue Bottles; Floating terror.
Despite its appearance, it is not a jellyfish, instead it is a ‘siphonophore’, an animal made up of individual organisms called polyps.
These polyps are physiologically integrated to such an extent that they cannot survive independently, creating a symbiotic relationship.
Composition: It comprises four separate polyps (1) a gas-filled bladder, (2) Tentacles, which are venomous, (3) digestive organisms and (4) reproductive organisms.
Tentacles:
The venom-filled tentacles are used to kill fish and other small creatures. For humans, a man-of-war sting is very painful, but rarely kills.
Even a dead Portuguese man of war washed up on shore can deliver a sting.
Distribution: They are found in the Atlantic, Indian and Pacific Oceans.
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