How do you treat a blue bottle sting in Australia?
Bluebottle and minor jellyfish
- Wash the sting site with sea water and remove any tentacles.
- Immerse the sting or run hot water on the skin for 20 minutes. Make sure the hot water will not burn the person.
- If there is no hot water, an ice pack may help to relieve the pain.
What happens if you get stung by a blue bottle?
A sting from a bluebottle causes an immediate sharp pain and acute inflammatory skin reaction, which has a linear appearance (Figure 1). The pain is worsened if the tentacles are moved or the area rubbed. The intense pain can last from minutes to many hours, and can be followed by a dull ache involving the joints.
Where are blue bottle jellyfish found in Australia?
In southern Western Australia they are blown onshore and can be seen on beaches in autumn and winter, less often in summer. They are frequently seen on Perth beaches. Bluebottles feed mostly on larval fish and small crustaceans such as copepods and amphipods.
What does a blue bottle jellyfish sting feel like?
Immediately after you get stung by a bluebottle, you will feel an intense jolt of pain. This pain will increase if the tentacles move around your body or the area that has been stung is touched. The pain will last for hours or minutes, depending on your particular situation.
Can blue bottles still sting when they are washed up?
Dried out, crusty, ‘dead’ bluebottles washed up on our beaches can still cause a painful sting. “Even if the animal is dead, and even if the tentacle is detached from the animal, it doesn’t matter because the stinging cells are actually independent from the will of the animal,” CSIRO Scientist Lisa-Ann Gerswhin said.
Should you pee on a blue bottle sting?
One widely shared remedy says urinating on the stung area may help, but does it? The answer is no. Our urine can either be acidic or alkaline, and when the latter, could make the sting worse by stimulating more stinging cells to be released. Freshwater should also not be applied to the sting for the same reason.
Are blue bottles poisonous?
“Even ingesting a really rank dead bluebottle on the beach can be laced with bacteria that the animals can’t recognise in the body — that can result in severe diarrhoea that requires veterinary attention,” Dr Zurek said. “If the tentacles touch the gums it can cause inflammation and that can result in ulceration.
Can bluebottle stings scar?
Bluebottle Sting Effects An abrupt and burning intense pain that can last for an hour. A swollen and itchy red line on the skin where the tentacle made contact. Blisters which can result in scarring (these scars usually fade within a few days or weeks).
What are blue bottles in Australia?
The Bluebottle, Physalia utriculus, is a common, if unwelcome, summer visitor to Sydney beaches. At the mercy of the wind, they are sometimes blown into shallow waters, and often wash up onto the beach.
Do you pee on bluebottle stings?
Why is it called a blue bottle fly?
The Bluebottle Fly is therefore often called a ‘blow fly’ because of its egg-laying habit or simply a ‘blue fly’ because of the bright metallic blue colour on its abdomen. Buzzing female flies seek out uncovered meat, fish, dead animals, garbage and faeces to blow on.