Nature & Environment

Venomous 'blue dragons' are washing up on beaches in Texas

By T.K. Randall
February 17, 2024 ·  3 comments

The species has a unique and impressive appearance. Image Credit: CC BY-SA 2.0 Sylke Rohrlach Sporting a vibrant sapphire coloring and unusual wing-like appendages, the blue dragon (or Glaucus atlanticus) is quite unlike anything else that you are likely to see while visiting the seaside.

This rare species, which typically spends its existence floating upside-down on the water's surface, lives in warm, tropical regions and feeds on venomous animals such as the Portuguese man o' war.

Beachgoers were particularly surprised, therefore, to find dozens of them washed up on the sand along North Padre Island, just south of Corpus Christi, Texas last weekend.

The spectacle prompted marine biologists to warn people not to touch them.

"If someone gets stung by a blue dragon it would be intense pain for about an hour," marine conservationist Jace Tunnell told Mail Online."People might experience nausea and the feeling like needles scraping the skin. Anyone who has been stung by a man o' war knows what I'm talking about."

It is believed that many more blue dragons will wash up on the beaches in the near future.

"This is just the first 'blue wave' of these organisms washing in together," the Harte Research Institute wrote on Facebook.

"Each spring when we get strong southeast winds blowing in, we get a wave of man-o-wars, by-the-wind-sailors, blue buttons, and the organisms that feed on them - the rarely seen blue dragon."

"You can expect to see this happening more as we get into spring."

Source: Mail Online | Comments (3)

Tags: Texas, Ocean