The Irukandji Jellyfish is really tiny but fatally venomous - it is just one cubic centimeter. It is found in the marine waters around Australia. The symptoms are known as the Irukandji Syndrome. There are two kinds of Irukandji Jellyfish - Malo Kingi and Carukia Barnesi. Hugo Flecker first documented the symptoms of the Irukandji Syndrome in 1952 - named after the Irukandji folk who inhabited the coastal strip tat lies north of Cairns in Queensland. Carukia Barnesi was the first species to be identified by Dr. Jack Barnes in 1964. Dr. Barnes, wanting to prove that this jellyfish had caused these symptoms, got himself to be stung by it, along with his son and a life guard.

The Irukandji Jellyfish has four tentacles that can range from a few centimeters in length to around 35 centimeters. The stingers are grouped in clumps and look like rings made up of small red dots around the bell of the jellyfish, and also along the tentacles. Since the Irukandji Jellyfish is too tiny and fragile to handle and contain, very little research has been done. However, it is known that its venom is a hundred times more potent than that of a cobra, and a thousand times as much as that of a tarantula. What ever research has been done, has confirmed that the potency of its venom allows it to stun its prey (like fast and small fish) very fast.

Unlike normal jellyfish that have stingers only on their tentacles, the Irukandji also has stingers at the end of its bell. Imagine a long sock that has been turned inside out and is coiled along the lines of a spring. On the stingers being triggered, they are pulled the right side out and uncoil in a flash and launch themselves straight into the flesh of any predator that touches the jellyfish. Microscopic stingers, in the millions, then release venom along the length. When the wounded predator pulls itself away, the stingers are ripped off from the jellyfish’s tentacles and remain buried in the predator’s body. One of the things that distinguish the Irukandji Jellyfish from other jellyfish is that it can fire stingers from its tips to inject the venom. There is no known reason yet for this unique phenomenon.

Symptoms of Irukandji Syndrome can including burning sensation at the area of contact, nausea, headaches, vomiting, drop in blood pressure and heart rate, sweating , intense and severely painful muscle cramps in the legs and arms as well as pain in the back and kidneys. Divers beware, the Irukandji Jellyfish!

The symptoms on an Irukandji sting come about in 4 to 30 hours, but may take up to two weeks to resolve completely. There is no known anti-venom and pain management is the treatment for this painful condition. Patients have been known to ask the doctor to kill them as they pain is so intense. Your best strategy to avoid this is to avoid the Irukandji. Be mindful where you are swimming and diving and of the seasons and water conditions for swimmers beware, the Irukandji Jellyfish!

Tags: Diving