Dog owners have been warned about the dangers of encountering jellyfish on the beaches around Galway after reports of dogs feeling unwell after sniffing or licking the dangerous Lion's Mane jellyfish.
While not fatal, the Lion's Mane tentacles give a painful sting that can cause nausea, sweating, cramps, headaches and other symptoms. The Lion’s Mane jellyfish, which can reach a diameter of up to two metres, has increased in number along the Irish coast over the last several years.
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Luana Jungmann, CEO of the NGO CuriOcean (curiocean.com ) said that there have been many sightings of the Lion's Mane at local beaches and that her dog became unwell after licking one.
"This is a picture of a Lion’s Man Jellyfish found a few days ago at the Claddagh beach. We are seeing a few of them lately around the area, some videos have been shared on the internet showing the jellyfish in Blackrock and although we cannot say for sure if that is the same one, we can confirm that there have been an increase in the species around Galway.
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"Lion's Mane has not a fatal sting, but it can be very painful and harmful. Our dog licked It and got very sick (throwing up and have breathing difficulties ) so people should be very careful with their dogs exploring the area," she said.
Ms Jungmann is a Marine Conservationist and Environmental Educator, who travelled the world to discover a variety of marine conservation topics.
Her marine biology and teaching background inspired the creation of a concept to meet the increasing demand for the information collected by scientists to be made accessible to the public in a pedagogical and funny way.
