Big Box Jellyfish Blog Southeast Asia

Box jellyfish are most probably, though officially unnamed, the species responsible for the death of a 5-year old French boy in Malaysia this week.   Sadly, the tragic news comes as no surprise with Malaysia still unwilling to create a network of awareness including effective prevention and treatment systems as its neighbour Thailand has done with considerable success. The boy was playing or wading in shallow water at Teluk Nipah beach on Pangkor Island with his family when he was struck by the jellyfish. He screamed in agony and was taken onto the sand where he lapsed into unconsciousness. Taken to the local health clinic, the boy was officially pronounced dead within 45 minutes.  We are sorry to say that this scenario is typical of a box jellyfish sting - a child, shallow sandy beach, an agonising scream, panicked parents, no understanding of proper treatment, shocking painful death. We are also sorry to say that this scenario is avoidable. It does not need to...

  Hungry? Got a craving for something completely different? There's nothing funny about a box jellyfish sting, and while they are a fascinating animal, it's hard to imagine that there's anything tasty about them either.  Having some fun describing the curious nature and habits of box jellyfish is one thing, but eating one straight off the plate is another thing entirely. What Is A Box Jellyfish? Big Dream Boatman Research In Hawaii What follows seems absurd. Can we say from the outset; kids, adults, everyone, please, DO NOT TRY THIS, EVER! We are only linking to these insane YouTube videos to boggle the mind and highlight what is clearly a bad idea. Having said that, perhaps, just perhaps, they are onto something. Some species of jellyfish are indeed edible. We've never tried it so cannot judge on taste, texture, after-effects, etc. But, particularly in some parts of Asia, jellyfish are harvested in large numbers and served in homes and restaurants. Apparently, jellyfis...

  Thailand may not have got everything perfect in its fight against box jellyfish, but it has got a lot right and been nothing short of proactive and persistent. A far cry from a number of its neighbours. Box jellyfish stings still occur in Thailand as do the occasional fatalities. No surprise here with so many beaches being their natural habitat. However, it could be much worse. In 2015, for example, popular Koh Samui was in a world of pain with a series of widely-publicised box jellyfish deaths threatening the island's rich tourism industry. Instead of burying their heads in the sand as others have, the Thais took the initiative and created a prevention and treatment program involving experts, government officials, hospitals and locals. It worked. And it still works. There are now many examples on this blog of how the Thais have achieved such impressive results. There are also some examples of what they have got wrong, though they are far outweighed by the successe...

  One of a number of countries in South-East Asia and around the world to open their doors and welcome back sadly-missed touri$ts, Thailand is at last seeing those endless, swarming queues at Suvarnabhumi Immigration - though obviously not hordes of Russians - meaning beach resorts are once more teeming with thawing bodies and tan oil while, as the latest box jellyfish warning tells us, an unwelcome local annoyance is waiting to spoil the fun. Koh Mak towards the Cambodian border in the Gulf of Thailand is no stranger to box jellyfish and severe life-threatening stings. This beautiful, laidback, environmentally-progressive island deserves better than to have potentially-deadly jellyfish causing concern; it is a gem.  The swaying palms, sweeping sands, inviting water and postcard views from lazy, mostly-deserted beaches belie an intermittent but persistent box jellyfish problem and, recently, reports of their presence in numbers as well as stings a...

  Tragically, it can happen anywhere there is a known, or unknown, habitat and presence of box jellyfish. It can be a beautiful, calm, tropical sandy beach. There can be many people, a few or none. Someone might even be wearing a protective lycra suit, though this is unlikely. Sometimes there are warning signs, often not. Perhaps there is a prevention net, usually there isn't. Or, there might be a lifeguard or two patrolling the beach and occasionally dragging a sampling net.  There may recently have been a mild or serious jellyfish sting there, or far worse, a fatal sting, but there is no obvious record or information.  You, eager to swim, wanting to cool down in the immersive sea in such a spectacular setting, naturally head unaware into the water. Little do you realise, or maybe you do but what are the odds, that the risk is ever-present and this swim could be your last. On the weekend, at a popular beach in Australia's far north-east, it happened, again...

  "Scientists have now also discovered that other species of jellyfish, most notably other cubozoans or box jellyfish (of which Irukandji is one of the smallest) also give rise to this syndrome. There are at least 8–12 other species of Irukandji jellyfish found in Australian waters. Most have been documented in the warmer waters of the east coast. Research has revealed that they also like to extend their tentacles and have caused injury in other parts of the world. Unfortunately there are no definitive tests that can confirm if patients are the victims of Irukandji stings. Treatment of the cryptic syndrome is also complex due to the varying symptoms, so it’s easy to misdiagnose." - Australian Geographic  If you've ever inexplicably felt like hell some time after emerging from the sea in South-East Asia and more than likely went to hospital where you could not get any relief from medication, comfort from loved ones and an explanation from doctors, a box jellyfish sting and...

  A nine-year old boy has died after being stung by a box jellyfish at Haad Rin on the island of Koh Phangan in Thailand. The tragic news filtered through after weeks of warnings from authorities about the heightened seasonal risk to  swimmers  in the region including Koh Samui, while treating a number of victims for box jellyfish stings. The boy who was with his family, Israeli nationals that have reportedly been living on the island for several years, was swimming outside of a nearby protective jellyfish prevention net on the evening of Saturday 28 August, 2021 when the incident occurred. Matichon, a major Thai-language national daily newspaper, reported that efforts were made on the scene to administer proper first aid, including vinegar, and to revive the boy who was rushed to Phangan International Hospital. Director-General of the Department of Marine and Coastal Resources,  Mr. Sophon Thongdee,  was quoted in Matichon saying, "B ox jellyfish...

  The image of a large Chironex species of box jellyfish that heads this page was snapped by an amateur photographer at Langkawi, the jewel of the north in Malaysia's tourism crown. The photograph was effortlessly taken  around 9pm  on 12th May, 2010 at Telaga Harbour, Langkawi from a moored boat using a camera and flash. In March, 2021, the Centre for Marine and Coastal Studies  (CEMACS) - Malaysia's leading marine education and research body - announced the release of a book: Field Guide to the Jellyfish of Western Pacific. A collaborative work where individual nation members of the IOC Westpac have tabled and published their extensive research in jellyfish taxonomy and  identification, the book is the first of its kind in the region and a comprehensive, definitive guide on jellyfish in the Western Pacific. That is, except for, the large Chironex species in this photograph. Read previous Post on this photograph: Langkawi Box Jellyfish 2010 Langkawi and nearby ...

Box jellyfish are widespread throughout the Indo-Pacific region and, while this blog is primarily focused on South-East Asia, tragic news of a fatality in a far north-east corner of tropical Australia resonates with relevancy throughout thousands of similar coastal communities. A young man of 17 has sadly lost his life, stung by a box jellyfish while net fishing with family at a faraway beach on the York Peninsula.  Box jellyfish are active right across the northern stretch of Australia during the wet season from October to May and stings from Chironex fleckerii and Irukandji occur though deaths are uncommon. Australia has developed a reasonably sophisticated and successful system of prevention and treatment education and tools so as to avoid tragic deaths such as that which occurred at Bamaga in Queensland this week. But, it's far from perfect. In fact, its effectiveness through concerted effort over a number of years is limited to specific places and areas, us...

A precious child is once again the focus of a life-threatening box jellyfish sting, another in a familiar pattern that stretches across South-East Asia. A tragic postcript to the following story, is news of further deaths: A 5-year old girl ( 17th May, 2021)  and a 7-year old girl (8th June, 2021), both killed by the venom from box jellyfish stings at different beaches in Camarines Sur province, south-east of Luzon. On the Philippines island of Negros, a family was day-tripping at beautiful Nabulao Beach when disaster struck. In the afternoon of 8 February, 2021, two young children were playing in the shallows with their father when one child let out a distressing cry. The girl had been stung by a box jellyfish. What followed was a deeply harrowing experience for the family as they desperately tried to keep their child alive.  The potentially lethal venom had taken hold and the little girl had fallen unconscious. On the way to the local hospital, her mother...

Social distancing takes to the sea with Singapore's popular playground island of Sentosa shocked by the sight of a large box jellyfish in its midst on 3 July, 2020.  Furthermore, Singapore's shock gets worse with reports of several stings.  Marine Stewards posted a video to Facebook of a large single-tentacle cubozoan at ONE15 Marina and word soon spread on social media warning people to stay out of the water. WATCH THE SENTOSA BOX JELLYFISH VIDEO The video shows the unsociable box jellyfish swimming solo on the water's surface with three long tentacles draping behind it - one seems to have gone missing in action. The appearance is that of a Morbakka, and it is certainly one to avoid.  While a multi-tentacle box jellyfish or Chirodropid (specifically Chironex species, as pictured atop of our home page) is considered the world's most venomous animal and is responsible for dozens of deaths annually throughout South-East Asia, the Morbakka is in the scientific order of Car...

Travel and tourism are in lockdown and the world's wanderlust is peaking. Novel coronavirus restrictions have severely wounded the industry, mortally in some cases,  but when the recovery (of sorts) comes, those that want and can will getaway quick.