Stinging jellyfish or Portuguese man-of-war are much more likely to put a damper on a beach vacation than a shark bite.

Author Peter Benchley, who took the fear of death by shark to a new level with Jaws, said: “I’ve never been hurt by a sea creature, except for jellyfish and sea urchins.”

Jellyfish, with their stinging tentacles, thrive in all oceans. Along the Gulf Coast, victims describe the pain from a brush with a jellyfish as similar to bee stings.

The Portuguese man-of-war is related to the jellyfish, similar in appearance and also will sting the heck out of you.

Beachcombers should not touch the washed-up gelatinous creatures. Even dead or beached jellyfish and detached tentacles can keep stinging.

JELLY BELLIES

Jellyfish eat plankton, juvenile barnacles, crabs, fish and even other jellies. Sea turtles love to eat jellyfish. Humans are more likely to find jellyfish on the menu in Asia.

FEEL THE BURN

Any jellyfish sting can kill if the victim has an allergic reaction. Most reactions along U.S. beaches, however, range from a barely noticeable sensation to rashes. Common Gulf Coast jelly stingers are moon, big pink, lion's mane and stinging nettle. The highly venomous box jellyfish, aka sea wasp, also has been spotted.

OH, MAN, THAT HURTS

Don't touch the burning rash streaks of Portuguese man-of-war stings. Use something like a credit card to scrape off the tentacles, which are almost invisible. Place the affected area under hot (not scalding) water or apply warm compresses. Nonprescription hydrocortisone cream or antihistamine tablets may relieve the itching rash that may follow.

DON'T PEE ON MY LEG

On Friends, when Monica is stung by a jellyfish, Joey and Chandler remember hearing that urine would reduce the pain of a jellyfish sting. In reality, there is no proof urine will help. If you get stung, splash the area with salt water. Then apply a paste of unseasoned meat tenderizer. Don't press the skin. Regular vinegar or a solution of one part bleach to 10 parts water also works to alleviate pain.

SHIP AHOY

The man-of-war got its name because it looks a bit like an early Portuguese sailing vessel. It also is known as a blue bottle and blue bubble.

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The term "jellyfish" often is used to denote weakness. But guess whodunit in Sherlock Holmes' 1926 The Adventure of the Lion's Mane?

MOVE LIKE A JELLYFISH

Delicate jellyfish are 98 percent water. They range in size from less than an inch to nearly 7 feet long, with tentacles more than 100 feet long. They can propel upward but depend on currents to determine their paths.

WHAT BIG TENTACLES YOU HAVE

Competing for largest jellyfish honors are the lion's mane jellyfish (Arctic Ocean and northern Pacific Ocean), which can have tentacles reaching 120 feet, and Nomura's jellyfish (Yellow Sea and East China Sea), which can reach 79 inches in body diameter and about 440 pounds.

DORY AND NEMO CALLED THEIR 'FRIEND' SQUISHY

The 2008 movie Jellyfish isn't about jellyfish. However, a Portuguese man-of-war has a scene with Ben Stiller in The Heartbreak Kid.

FLOATING PHANTOMS

Where to see confined jellies: Texas State Aquarium in Corpus Christi, Newport (Kentucky) Aquarium, Monterey Bay (California) Aquarium and Georgia Aquarium in Atlanta. Or go to Jellyfish Lake on the island of Palou in the Pacific Ocean.

Sources: Texas Department of Fish and Wildlife, Animal.Discovery.com, animals.NationalGeographic.com, National Science Foundation

lana.berkowitz@chron.com