Warnings issued to beachgoers after Portuguese Man 'o War wash up on coast of Wales.

Visitors to beaches in South Wales have been warned to keep Dogs on leads and avoid walking barefoot after a number of Portuguese Man 'o War, Physalia physalis, have been found on beaches in Pembrokeshire and Carmarthenshire this week. The planktonic Animals die rapidly after being exposed on beaches, but remain capable of delivering a powerful and unpleasant sting for some time afterwards, and in extreme circumstances these can prove fatal to both Humans and Dogs. Detatched tentacles, which are harder to spot than their brightly coloured floats, also present a risk. The venemous Cnidarians have been seen on beaches at Cefn Sidan, Llansteffan, Broadhaven, Manorbier, Newton, Freshwater West, and Newgale. They have also been reported at Tywyn, Barmouth and Harlech on the coast of Gwynedd in North Wales, though in lower numbers.

 

A Portuguese Man 'o War, Physalia physalis, on Llansteffan Beach in Carmarthenshire, South Wales, on 19 November 2020. Carolynne Owen/Wales Online.

Portuguese Man o' War are colonial Siphonophores only distantly related to true Jellyfish, Scyphozoa, though commonly referred to as such. Their bodies are made up of thousands of individual zooids, each with their own sting, tentacles and digestive system. New zooids are formed by budding from other members of the colony, but remain attached to these to form a single colony. Each year a generation of specialist sexual zooids (gonozoids) is produced which produce eggs and sperm, with fertilised eggs going on to form new colonies. These animals are anchored to the sea surface by a highly modified zooid which forms an air sack, filled with a mixture of carbon monoxide defused from the zooid and nitrogen, oxygen and argon from the atmosphere, which are brought into the sack through osmosis. Portuguese Man o' War produce an extremely strong venom, for both capturing food and defending the colony, and which is capable of causing extremely painful stings, and sometimes death, in Humans, for which reason people are advised to be extremely cautious on beaches where these animals wash up, not just of entire animals but also detached tentacles, which are less visible but still capable of stinging.

 

A Portuguese Man o' War in the water. NOAA/Wikipedia.

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Magnitude 1.1 Earthquake beneath Caernarfon Bay, North Wales.

The British Geological Survey recorded a Magnitude 1.1 Earthquake at a depth of about 12 km, beneath Caernarfon Bay on the coast of Gwynedd, North Wales, slightly before 11.00 pm British Summertime (slightly before 10.00 pm GMT) on Wednesday 18 July 2018. There are no reports of any damage or casualties associated with this event, and nor would they be expected with an Earthquake this small, but the quake was felt in Caernarfon, Talysarn, Llanfaelog and Cwm-y-glo.

 

The approximate location of the 18 July 2018 Caernarfon Bay Earthquake. Google Maps.

 

Earthquakes become more common as you travel north and west in Great Britain, with the west coast of Scotland being the most quake-prone part of the island and the northwest of Wales being more prone  to quakes than the rest of Wales or most of England.

The precise cause of Earthquakes in the UK can be hard to determine; the country is not close to any obvious single cause of such activity such as a plate margin, but is subject to tectonic pressures from several different sources, with most quakes probably being the result of the interplay between these forces.

The precise cause of Earthquakes in the UK can be hard to determine; the country is not close to any obvious single cause of such activity such as a plate margin, but is subject to tectonic pressures from several different sources, with most quakes probably being the result of the interplay between these forces.

 

(Top) Simplified diagram showing principle of glacial rebound. Wikipedia. (Bottom) Map showing the rate of glacial rebound in various parts of the UK. Note that some parts of England and Wales show negative values, these areas are being pushed down slightly by uplift in Scotland, as the entire landmass is quite rigid and acts a bit like a see-saw. Climate North East.

 

Witness accounts of Earthquakes can help geologists to understand these events, and the structures that cause them. If you felt this quake, or were in the area but did not (which is also useful information) then you can report it to the British Geological Survey here. 

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Magnitude 1.5 Earthquake in Gwynedd, north Wales.

The British Geological Survey recorded a Magnitude 1.5 Earthquake at a depth of 7 km, slightly to the north of the settlement of Llanfachreth in Gwynedd, North Wales, slightly before 2.00 am GMT on Thursday 24 December 2015. An Earthquake of this size is not dangerous, and is highly unlikely to have caused any damage or injuries, but is may have been felt locally.

 

 The approximate location of the 24 December 2015 Llanfachreth Earthquake. Google Maps.

 

Earthquakes become more common as you travel north and west in Great Britain, with the west coast of Scotland being the most quake-prone part of the island and the northwest of Wales being more prone  to quakes than the rest of Wales or most of England.

 

The precise cause of Earthquakes in the UK can be hard to determine; the country is not close to any obvious single cause of such activity such as a plate margin, but is subject to tectonic pressures from several different sources, with most quakes probably being the result of the interplay between these forces. 

 

The precise cause of Earthquakes in the UK can be hard to determine; the country is not close to any obvious single cause of such activity such as a plate margin, but is subject to tectonic pressures from several different sources, with most quakes probably being the result of the interplay between these forces.

 

 

(Top) Simplified diagram showing principle of glacial rebound. Wikipedia. (Bottom) Map showing the rate of glacial rebound in various parts of the UK. Note that some parts of England and Wales show negative values, these areas are being pushed down slightly by uplift in Scotland, as the entire landmass is quite rigid and acts a bit like a see-saw. Climate North East.

  

Witness accounts of Earthquakes can help geologists to understand these events, and the structures that cause them. If you felt this quake, or were in the area but did not (which is also useful information) then you can report it to the British Geological Survey here. 

 

Seen also...

 

Magnitude 1.2 Earthquake on the Lleyn Peninsula.                                                  The British Geological Survey recorded a Magnitude 1.3 Earthquake at a depth of 10 km, on the north coast of the Lleyn Peninsula in Gwynedd, North Wales...

Magnitude 1.9 Earthquake in Flintshire, North Wales.                                                  The British Geological Survey recorded a Magnitude 1.9 Earthquake at a depth of 5 km, to the southeast of Prestatyn in Flintshire, North Wales, at about 12.55 pm..

Magnitude 3.0 Earthquake off the coast of Caernarfon, North Wales.                        The British Geological Survey recorded a Magnitude 3.0 Earthquake at a depth of 9 km, off the east coast of Caernarfon in Gwynedd, North Wales, slightly after...

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Magnitude 1.2 Earthquake on the Lleyn Peninsula.

The British Geological Survey recorded a Magnitude 1.3 Earthquake at a depth of 10 km, on the north coast of the Lleyn Peninsula in Gwynedd, North Wales, slightly after 8.05 am British Summertime (slightly after 9.05 am GMT) on Tuesday 11 August 2015. An Earthquake of this size is not dangerous, and is highly unlikely to have caused any damage or injuries, but may have been felt locally.

The approximate location of the 11 August 2015 Lleyn Peninsula Earthquake. Google Maps.

Earthquakes become more common as you travel north and west in Great Britain, with the west coast of Scotland being the most quake-prone part of the island and the northwest of Wales being more prone  to quakes than the rest of Wales or most of England.

The precise cause of Earthquakes in the UK can be hard to determine; the country is not close to any obvious single cause of such activity such as a plate margin, but is subject to tectonic pressures from several different sources, with most quakes probably being the result of the interplay between these forces.

Britain is being pushed to the east by the expansion of the Atlantic Ocean and to the north by the impact of Africa into Europe from the south. It is also affected by lesser areas of tectonic spreading beneath the North Sea, Rhine Valley and Bay of Biscay. Finally the country is subject to glacial rebound; until about 10 000 years ago much of the north of the country was covered by a thick layer of glacial ice (this is believed to have been thickest on the west coast of Scotland), pushing the rocks of the British lithosphere down into the underlying mantle. This ice is now gone, and the rocks are springing (slowly) back into their original position, causing the occasional Earthquake in the process. 

(Top) Simplified diagram showing principle of glacial rebound. Wikipedia. (Bottom) Map showing the rate of glacial rebound in various parts of the UK. Note that some parts of England and Wales show negative values, these areas are being pushed down slightly by uplift in Scotland, as the entire landmass is quite rigid and acts a bit like a see-saw. Climate North East.

Witness accounts of Earthquakes can help geologists to understand these events, and the structures that cause them. If you felt this quake, or were in the area but did not (which is also useful information) then you can report it to the British Geological Survey here.

See also...

Magnitude 3.0 Earthquake off the coast of Caernarfon, North Wales.

The British Geological Survey recorded a Magnitude 3.0 Earthquake at a depth of 9 km, off the east coast of Caernarfon in Gwynedd, North Wales, slightly after...

Magnitude 1.0 Earthquake in Gwynedd, North Wales.

The British Geological Survey recorded a Magnitude 1.0 Earthquake at a depth of 12 km in northeast Gwynedd, North Wales, slightly after 10.30 pm British...

Magnitude 0.9 Earthquake in Gwynedd, North Wales.

The British Geological Survey recorded a Magnitude 0.9 Earthquake at a depth of 11 km in eastern Gwynedd County, North Wales, slightly before 1.25 am GMT...

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