First record of hydrozoan genera Eucheilota McCrady, 1859 and Mitrocomella Haeckel, 1879 and species Porpita porpita (Linnaeus, 1758) and Physalia physalis (Linnaeus, 1758) in Bali, Indonesia

This report documents the first record of the genera Eucheilota and Mitrocomella and species Porpita porpita and Physalia physalis in Bali, Indonesia, based on observed occurrences in different times and sites. The coincidence of the annual stranding of Physalia physalis in the east Bali and south Java coasts during the monsoon periods in Indonesia suggests a link with the upwelling events in the areas. However, more work is needed to analyse this phenomenon and study the occurrences of other Hydromedusae due to the limited data on hydrozoans in Indonesian waters. Overall, this report provides primary data to contribute to the general understanding of the biodiversity of marine organisms in Indonesia.

Drifting dynamics of the bluebottle (<i>Physalia physalis</i>)

Physalia physalis, also called the bluebottle in Australia, is a colonial animal resembling a jellyfish that is well known to beachgoers for the painful stings delivered by its tentacles. Despite being a common occurrence, the origin of the bluebottle before reaching the coastline is not well understood, and neither is the way it drifts at the surface of the ocean. Previous studies used numerical models in combination with simple assumptions to calculate the drift of this species, excluding complex drifting dynamics. In this study, we provide a new parameterization for Lagrangian modelling of the bluebottle by considering the similarities between the bluebottle and a sailboat. This allows us to compute the hydrodynamic and aerodynamic forces acting on the bluebottle and use an equilibrium condition to create a generalized model for calculating the drifting speed and course of the bluebottle under any wind and ocean current conditions. The generalized model shows that the velocity of the bluebottle is a linear combination of the ocean current velocity and the wind velocity scaled by a coefficient (“shape parameter”) and multiplied by a rotation matrix. Adding assumptions to this generalized model allows us to retrieve models used in previous literature. We discuss the sensitivity of the model to different parameters (shape, angle of attack and sail camber) and explore different cases of wind and current conditions to provide new insights into the drifting dynamics of the bluebottle.

The Portuguese Man-of-war, One of The Most Dangerous Marine Species, Has Always Entered The Mediterranean Sea: Strandings, Sightings And Museum Collections

A search from different kinds of sources has been carried out to review the incidence of Physalia physalis, the Portuguese man-of-war, in the Mediterranean Sea; scientific and grey literature, social media, zoological museums were accessed. The records of the species were considered validated if documented with images or collected specimens. It was possible to date the putative first record of Physalia physalis in the Mediterranean Sea, thanks to a couple of colonies preserved in a historical collection, originating from the Gulf of Naples in 1914. Some massive strandings occurred in localities of the Alboran Sea, area of entrance from the Atlantic from where the species spread mainly along the Sicilian waters, in the central Mediterranean Sea. The records from the Italian maritime regions were then subdivided into three categories of risk according to the season of occurrence. These categories were created to assign a level of danger for swimmers to the sightings of Physalia physalis. The increasing sightings of such a poisonous organism in coastal waters can represent a risk to human health, and also to all those activities linked to the marine tourism sector. The involvement of citizens and touristic structures for the early detection of Physalia physalis can play a key role in preventing encounters with the species, allowing marine tourist facilities to operate within a range of reasonable security.

LEVANTAMENTO PRELIMINAR DE CNIDÁRIOS DE BARRA GRANDE, PENÍSULA DE MARAÚ, BAHIA

IINTRODUÇÃO - Os cnidários são invertebrados predominantemente marinhos com ampla distribuição mundial, formados por quatro classes: Hydrozoa, Scyphozoa, Cubozoa e Anthozoa. Sua distribuição é cosmopolita, sendo encontradas 470 espécies no Brasil, tendo no litoral da Bahia os maiores e mais ricos recifes de corais. Apesar da distribuição e abundância, a diversidade Cnidaria ainda é pouco conhecida, com número relativamente pequeno de espécies descritas. OBJETIVO - Expandir o conhecimento a respeito da diversidade deste grupo, através da realização de um levantamento preliminar das espécies de cnidários que ocorrem em Barra Grande, Bahia. MATERIAL E MÉTODOS - Foram realizadas amostragens em três pontos de coleta e em cada local, utilizou-se metodologia específica. Na praia da Mangueira, a amostragem foi feita no mesolitoral, com coleta manual. Na praia Três Coqueiros foi usado o arrasto de porta junto com embarcação, com distância de aproximadamente 1000 metros da costa, durante cerca de quatro horas. Na praia de Taipús de Fora as coletas foram manualmente no infralitoral e mesolitoral e também através de mergulhos livres no sublitoral. Todo o material coletado foi acondicionado em potes e sacos plásticos devidamente identificados. Posteriormente, as amostras foram triadas, fotografadas e acondicionadas em recipientes com solução de álcool a 70%. As fotografias foram enviadas a especialistas para realização das devidas identificações taxonômicas. Em toda a área estudada foram coletados 50 exemplares correspondentes a nove espécies de Cnidaria: Millepora sp. (coral: Hydrozoa); Physalia physalis (caravela: Hydrozoa); Actinia fragacea (anêmona: Anthozoa); Carcinactis dolosa (anêmona: Anthozoa) associadas ao Clibanarius vittatus (paguro: Malacostraca); Montastrea cavernosa (coral: Anthozoa); Mussismilia braziliensis (coral: Anthozoa); Siderastrea stellata (coral: Anthozoa); Aurelia sp. (água-viva: Scyphozoa) e Lychnorhiza lucerna (água-viva: Scyphozoa). RESULTADOS - Este levantamento preliminar mostrou uma considerável diversidade de espécies de Cnidária em Barra Grande. Recomendando-se que sejam realizadas coletas complementares na costa, áreas recifais e afastadas, em profundidades maiores, utilizando métodos de coletas mais diversificados e específicos, como rede de plâncton e mergulho autônomo. CONCLUSÃO - Baseados nesses resultados, recomenda-se também que sejam realizados inventários complementares sobre a diversidade do Filo Cnidaria na costa da Bahia, os quais poderão ampliar o conhecimento sobre o grupo no Brasil.

Successful Treatment of Recurrent Dermatitis after Physalia physalis (Portuguese Man O’ War) Envenomation with Extracorporeal Shock Wave Therapy

For more than 3 decades, extracorporeal shock wave therapy (ESWT) has been clinically implemented in urologic and orthopaedic indications. Here, we present the case of a patient with envenomation from a highly toxic jellyfish-like siphonophore (<i>Physalia physalis</i>) with a toxic contact dermatitis resulting in chronic eruptive skin lesions. The skin lesions on the dorsal right hand lasted more than 16 weeks and were refractive to local cortisone treatment. They finally healed after 8 applications of low-energy planar/defocused ESWT over 4 weeks. In detail, the clinical course, ESWT specifications and the possible mechanisms of ESWT in the light of the current literature are discussed. Our case indicates that ESWT is an underestimated, promising non-invasive, non-immunosuppressive treatment for chronic eruptive skin lesions after jellyfish or related toxin envenomations.

La Fragata Portuguesa o Aguamala (Physalia physalis): Importancia en la salud pública

La Fragata Portuguesa (Physalia physalis) es un llamativo sifonóforo colonial de aguas abiertas que vive entre la interface aire y mar. Sus tentáculos se caracterizan por producir dolorosas lesiones que en raros casos ha causado la muerte de la persona. En el Atlántico, los arribazones de Physalia están siendo más comunes en los últimos años, lo que causa el incremento de las afecciones a los humanos. En inicios de marzo 2020, se registró un arribazón de Physalia en el Litoral Central venezolano (mar Caribe). Por este motivo se procedió a documentar el evento y suministrar información adecuada que permita conocer más sobre estos animales, así como su importancia en la salud pública. Se revisan las medidas que deben ser consideradas al detectar su presencia, primeros auxilios e indicaciones recomendadas para el tratamiento por parte del personal médico.