Thimble jelly larvae have arrived

[MMM]

I wonder if that actually makes it worse because if they get in, they can't get out and they are trapped up against your skin.

Yes, that is what I read. It is when they are trapped that they sting. I'm going to ditch my beanie and go back to wearing my hooded vest under my wetsuit. I decided not to wear my hooded vest as the water felt like it had warmed up some. That was a mistake.

Ah, the dreaded Agua Mala !! The lady that owned the first shop I'd worked for, used to break out horribly from the little bastages, but for some reason, they never bothered me much. Some folks seemed to get zapped pretty bad, and others very little or not at all.

I react pretty badly to any sort of sting...mosquitos, horseflies, you name it...almost like an allergic reaction.

 

[scubadada]

...I react pretty badly to any sort of sting...mosquitos, horseflies, you name it...almost like an allergic reaction.

My wife had a much more severe reaction the second time she got sea lice. I'm pretty sure is was mediated mostly my an augmented allergic reaction. Benadryl and topical steroids were very useful.

 

[aquacat8]

I’ve had a sting pattern come back up like two weeks later on a hot sweaty night!

 

[beaverdivers]

The old saying was: Pica Pica ( Aqua Mala ) is usually between Mother's Day and Father's Day. But it can start early and end late.

 

[MMM]

The old saying was: Pica Pica ( Aqua Mala ) is usually between Mother's Day and Father's Day. But it can start early and end late.

What I saw when I researched this was April-June...mas o menos.

 

[KathyV]

One year we encountered Pica Pica in Roatan during April. The first indication that something was very wrong was when we saw a little local boy come running out of the water screaming in terror, poor kid.

There were large rafts of thimble jellies floating around and we tried to avoid them, but the larvae were invisible in the water and they could still get you. Cortisone crème was the most popular treatment.

Some divers were hit bad and had nasty, red, and itchy eruptions. I remember talking to a German diver that was getting ready to head home and he was worried that immigration wouldn't let him back into the country, because he looked like he had a serious contagious disease - I hope that he didn't have any trouble - because he was already feeling pretty bad.

We were lucky and we didn't get any lesions. The dive op told us to cover up our exposed skin as much as possible including wearing hoods if we had them. Gloves are not prohibited on Roatan but they are usually discouraged, but that time we were encouraged to wear gloves and to pull our seaskin or rashguard sleeves down over the tops of the gloves.

The divemasters had a jar of Vaseline on board and they told us to smear it on our necks and faces around the mask and other exposed areas to prevent the larvae from penetrating the skin.

Nasty stuff, hope I never encounter it again!

 

[drrich2]

Maybe. From what I have read on-line their season is April-June or thereabouts.

Good to know! Aside from KathyV's mention of a Roatan experience, seems like the two times (including this one) I recall reading about these both related to Cozumel, and I don't recall seeing them mentioned elsewhere in the Caribbean. I don't doubt the can be an issue elsewhere, but...

just how widespread a problem are they? In other words, what regional destinations are they mainly a pain at?

Richard.

 

[guruboy]

How large are these?

 

[KathyV]

How large are these?

Small, the jellyfish less than an inch in diameter but the larvae are very tiny and invisible in the water.

 

[KathyV]

Good to know! Aside from KathyV's mention of a Roatan experience, seems like the two times (including this one) I recall reading about these both related to Cozumel, and I don't recall seeing them mentioned elsewhere in the Caribbean. I don't doubt the can be an issue elsewhere, but...

just how widespread a problem are they? In other words, what regional destinations are they mainly a pain at?

Richard.

"Coastal Waters" is the reference that I saw, so pretty broad range I'm guessing. Here is an article about them in Bonaire:
Jellyfish Life Cycle - Stinapa Bonaire