Our Saturday morning email features the very best news and exclusive content from our team of reporters Sign me up! Thank you for subscribing See our privacy notice Invalid Email

A mum-of-two was taken to hospital after she was bitten by a tiny octopus in Cornwall.

Jacqueline Hunt was shrimping at low tide with her husband Richard and her daughters Emily and Isabelle when the incident happened on Wednesday, August 14.

The family were at Helford following Richard's birthday and used for the first time a shrimping net he had just been offered.

They caught a small octopus. But when Jacqueline tried to remove gently it from the net, the octopus bit her.

She said: "It was a beautiful, small, curled octopus, I think, and we handled it very gently and briefly.

"It must have felt threatened as it bit me on the hand quite badly."

(Image: Jacqueline Hunt)

Jacqueline said that the bite was really painful.

"Initially it felt like a small, sharp, pinch, but the pain then increased significantly, and felt like a very painful injection - which I suppose it was, as I now understand that all octopuses inject some venom.

"Luckily the octopuses in Cornwall are not as deadly as the blue ringed species as featured in James Bond's Octopussy."

Jacqueline's husband told her to put her hand into the water and the octopus let go and swam off.

She continued: "The site of the bite began to bleed and swell almost immediately. We called NHS 111 who were very helpful and advised going to the nearest hospital.

(Image: Jacqueline Hunt)

"By now my hand was very hot and swollen, luckily I had thought to remove my wedding ring quickly, or by now it would have had to be cut off.

"I am very grateful to all the staff for the excellent NHS care I received. No-one at the Helston Cottage Hospital, nor locals who have used the estuary all their lives, had come across such an incident."

Jacqueline's hand and wrist swelled up and she is now on antibiotics and antihistamines.

Now she wishes to warn people not to handle octopuses, even briefly or gently as she did.

(Image: Jacqueline Hunt)

"I am relieved it wasn't my daughters that were bitten," she said. "I do think it's helpful for people to realise it's better not to handle them.

"We wonder if there may be a few of these around at the moment as just the day before, whilst fishing from his kayak off the headland, my husband caught a similar sized octopus, and was glad afterwards that he had not landed it, as it would have been difficult if it had it bitten him then!"