Aussies stunned by woman's unwitting act on beach: 'Don't touch them!'
The beachgoer said there were 'hundreds' of the blue inflated things during her walk – but she didn't know what they were.
An Aussie woman has narrowly escaped injury after unwittingly picking up a dangerous creature and innocently asking the internet what it was that she had found washed up on the beach, simply describing it as "plastic rubbish".
Last week, the South Australian was travelling along the Great Ocean Road when she stopped at Massacre Bay, Victoria, for a walk. It was there she spotted "hundreds" of the inflated blue things among a bunch of "kelp and seaweed on the shore".
"Any ID thoughts?" she asked a dedicated Facebook group.
The woman picked up some of the bluebottles and took a picture. That's when she quickly found out the absent-minded act could have been a painful one — with the jellyfish renowned for their uncomfortable stings.
"Don't touch them!" one person urged, clearly too late. While another person offered some advice: "Just a tip, if you don't know what something is, don't pick it up".
"I can't believe people don't know what a bluebottle is," one person commented.
What to do if you're stung by a bluebottle this summer
Every year up to 30,000 bluebottle stings are reported in the country, with the majority occurring in the eastern states. Bluebottles account for the majority of reported cases of Aussies who come into contact with marine stingers, with an expert telling Yahoo there is one particular method swimmers should turn to when treating the itchy blisters their tentacles cause.
It is best to rinse the area with seawater, remove any remaining tentacles and immerse the skin in hot water, as it is known to provide relief within 10 minutes. The common myth of urinating on the affected area or using vinegar is not advised.
"Definitely not recommended to use vinegar or urine," Surf Life Saving Australia’s Dr Jaz Lawes previously told Yahoo News. "The best thing to do is pull the tentacles off and rinse with seawater first and then hot water/shower — as hot as you can stand it — for 20 minutes."
Aussies asked to report sightings for new 'forecasting system'
Despite the stingers being common and often unwelcome summer visitors, little is known about them. A group of marine biologists from Griffith University and UNSW has commenced a project called Bluebottle Watch, in partnership with Surf Life Saving Australia.
The project hopes to develop a deeper understanding of the stingers and help to create a "forecast system" so beachgoers and experts alike can be aware of where they are.
Aussies are encouraged to report any bluebottle sightings to help the team collect data on stingers along the coast. If you see a bluebottle on the beach, take a photo and upload it to the iNaturalist platform.
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