Jellyfishing

While I was watching the SpongeBob episode on jellyfishing (for the 100^th time) with my grandson I got to thinking about thimble jellyfish and their pesky larvae A.K.A sea lice. These, for all practical purposes mainly avoidance invisible pests, inhabit the waters of the Caribbean from late January till the first of June. They must be rinsed off quickly after swimming or the swimmer will know the misery they inflict! I guess I’m thinking about them because I am heading off to a place where they might be lurking. I definitely have beach time on my mind and I don’t want an itchy rash to spoil things. Each organism (thimble jellyfish larva) possesses only a single undeveloped nematocyst which is inactive while suspended in sea water. However, due to their microscopic size and sticky bodies, large concentrations of larvae can become trapped in minute gaps between your skin and clothing or hair. Once you leave the ocean, the organisms stuck against your skin die and automatically discharge their nematocysts when crushed, dried out, or exposed to fresh water. This is why symptoms usually do not appear until you dry off in the sun or take a freshwater shower without first removing the affected clothing. So tomorrow isn't exactly the first of June but I’m sure hoping the sea lice season ends a couple of days early.