THE BOX JELLYFISH! BY RILEY ANASTASI! Scientific name: Chironex
fleckeri Class: Cubozoa
Slide 2
WHAT IS IT? The box Jelly fish is an invertebrate sea animal
(also known as a Sea Wasp). It is a very dangerous creature that
inhabits Australian waters. This Jellyfish is responsible for more
deaths (in Australia) than snakes, sharks and many more animals.
The jellyfish has extremely deadly neurotoxic toxins in its body.
When its tenticals sting something it realeases them, poisening its
victim. It can kill an adult in 4 minutes. The jellyfish has a
square body (hence were it gets its name) and inhabits the north
east areas of Australia. It is comonly found along the coast of the
Great Barrier Reef. This species is related to another deadly
jellyfish, the irukandji jellyfish.
Slide 3
WHAT IS IT? They are pale blue and transparent in colour. They
can grow up to 15 tentacles from each corner of the bell (60
tentacles in total)which can reach up to 3 meters in length. Its
body measures up to 30 cm in diameter and its weight can reach 2
kg. Each tentacle has about 5,000 stinging cells, which are
triggered by the presence of a chemical on the outer layer of its
prey. Not by the touch of its prey. Box jellyfish are highly
advanced among other jellyfish. They have the ability to move
rather than just drift. Moving up to four knots through the water.
They also have eyes grouped in clusters of six on the four sides of
their bell. Each cluster includes a pair of eyes that are very
detailed and complex, without a central nervous system scientists
today are still not sure how they process what they see.
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BOX JELLY FISH ATTACKS 10 YEAR OLD!
Slide 5
Rachael Shardlow, a ten year old girl, was attacked by a box
jellyfish in Calliope river in central Queensland. Rachael had been
swimming in the River (23 kilometres upstream from the ocean mouth)
with her brother, near the town of Gladstone when she was stung.
Losing consciousness, her brother (13 years old) had to pull her
out of the water and the jellyfish's tentacles that were still
wrapped around her legs. Before she passed out, she told him she
could not see or breathe. Box jellyfish stings are so painful that
victims often go into shock, get paralysed and drown or die of
heart failure before reaching shore. There is no known antidote.
The sting attacks the heart, nervous system and skin. They also
give their victims shooting muscle pains, vomiting and a rapid rise
in blood pressure. Jamie Seymour, a zoology professor from James
Cook University, told the news, "When I first saw the pictures of
the injuries I just went, 'You know, to be honest, this kid should
not be alive. I mean, they are horrific creatures. Rachael's
father, Geoff, says his daughter has some short-term memory loss as
well as the scarring. Medics say she should be dead and her family
are just thankful for a miracle. She spent six weeks recovering in
hospital before returning home.
Slide 6
HOW DOES IT ATTACK? The box Jellyfish tentacles have about
5,000 stinging cells. These are triggered by the presence of a
chemical on the outer layer of its prey. It paralyses the prey The
box jellyfish actively hunts zooplankton and small fish. Most
jellyfish can only drift but the box jellyfish is capable of
achieving speeds of up to 4 knots (7.4kmh) which is a big advantage
when hunting. Box jellyfish are sometimes known as the
suckerpunchers of the sea because their sting is rarely detected
until the venom is injected and because they are almost
transparent. Sea turtles, however, are apparently unaffected by the
sting and eat box jellies.
Slide 7
ITS VENOM! The venom is very complex. It has neurotoxic
effects, which is fast acting. It attacks the central nervous
system, stopping the messages from being sent from the brain around
the body. You are quickly paralyzed which eventually stops the
respiratory system from working, you can drown, die from heart
failure or many other the things. It will also inflame, disrupt
sodium and potassium ion exchange, attack organs and cellular
structure. Box jellyfish venom has a median lethal dose of 40
micrograms, which makes it the strongest marine toxin. The venom
may kill a person weighing 70 kg within 3 minutes. Box jellyfish
venom has caused 72 deaths secondary to respiratory paralysis,
neuromuscular paralysis drowning, and cardiovascular collapse.
Slide 8
HOW NEUROTOXIC VENOM WORKS! Once a tentacle of the box
jellyfish sticks to the skin, it pumps nematocysts with venom into
the skin causing the sting and lots of pain. Removal of additional
tentacles is usually done with a towel, gloved hand or other tool
to prevent secondary stinging. Tentacles will still sting if
separated from the bell, or after the creature is dead. The venom
works by either breaking down the cells producing important signal
chemicals or by combining with the chemicals themselves. This
confuses the receptors which should be transmitting messages around
the body.
Slide 9
TREATMENT! Vinegar is an effective treatment as it disables the
box jellyfishes nematocysts not yet discharged into the
bloodstream. This does not relieve pain, but prevents additional
stings. Make sure never to rub the area with sand or anything else.
You should apply lots of vinegar before and after the stinging
tentacle is removed. If you have not applied vinegar to and around
the sting when you remove the tentacle you may cause some
nematocysts to come into contact with the skin and cause more
stinging. Tentacles will still sting if separated from the
jellyfish or after it has died. Some rumors on sting treatment say
that urine, sodium bicarbonate, lemon juice, applying heat or cold
packs, alcohol, fresh water or steroid cream will disable any
further stinging. There is no scientific evidence to support this,
these substances may even quicken the release of venom. In really
bad box Jellyfish cases cardiac arrest can occur quickly so CPR
(Cardiopulmonary resuscitation) can be life saving. If the victim
stops breathing this should take priority over all other treatment
options. In 2011 Professor Angel Yanagihara announced that she had
developed an antivenom by analyzing the box jellyfishes venom. Its
was demonstrated in the documentary Venom: Nature's killer.
Slide 10
ATTACK STATISTICS! The statistics are actually surprisingly
low. They are thought to be higher because the media publishes and
makes big stories out of the attacks. The Box Jelly fish has been
the cause of around 70 fatal jellyfish attacks in tropical
Australian waters.