In a book of Who’s Who of Alabama Animals, jellyfish can claim the chapter, “Wonderfully Weird and Occasionally Wicked.” Few creatures pique one’s curiosity, evoke awe and sting like the dickens more than this glob of distinction.

The Gulf Coast has more than 60 species of jellyfish. Most we never see, but some swim among us. Nature’s Jell-O has changed little since prehistoric times.

Jellyfish have no brain, heart or central nervous system. What makes this animal a living being and not wet Play-Doh? We asked experts, who refer to jellyfish as “jellies,” because a jellyfish is not a fish.

“There are many misconceptions about jellies,” said Anthony Moss, Auburn University associate professor and marine program coordinator. “Most people think jellies just float around, but, actually, many on the Alabama coastline are good swimmers.

“Some make sharp turns and maneuver tentacles in a manner that makes it more likely to trap prey – plankton and tiny fish,” he said.

Alabama’s Gulf Coast has more than 60 species of jellyfish, of which seven are common. (contributed)

Most jellyfish swim the way jets fly, through propulsion. They suck water in their bodies and push it out, causing motion.

Pretty impressive for an aquatic existence void of cognitive thought. But what jellyfish lack in brains, they make up in nerves. In fact, we get on their nerves. It’s how they know we are there.

“We are still looking at how jellyfish think,” Moss said. “They don’t have a nervous system, but they have a nerve bed, distributed through its entire body.

“The cells coordinate muscular contractions and access environmental conditions. Jellyfish are much more capable of sensing the environment than we used to think. They sense prey possibly through smell and vibrations in the water.”

Most Alabamians’ memories of jellies are not pleasant. Their stings range from mildly annoying to, in rare cases, requiring hospital care. But if jellyfish could discuss their stings, they would say, “Don’t blame me; blame my tentacles.”

As head curator of the Alabama Aquarium at the Dauphin Island Sea Lab, Brian Jones knows jellyfish through research and personal experience. “Oh, yeah, I’ve had a few stings in my day,” he said. He explained the animal’s thought process – or the lack thereof – during stinging.

Head Curator Brian Jones discusses jellyfish with a visitor to the Alabama Aquarium at the Dauphin Island Sea Lab. (Emmett Burnett / Alabama Living)

Touch it, you’re stung

“Jellyfish stinging cells are embedded with tethered harpoons,” Jones said. “The cells are triggered by touch. If you rub against it, you are shot. The sting is a mechanical stimuli reaction. The jellyfish has no say in the matter – its nerve pad does.”

Once the barb is injected, a toxin is pumped through the tethered line into the jelly’s prey – small fish, larva, tiny crustaceans or collegiate spring breakers. Hence the sting.

Once deployed, the tentacle/barb can be used only once, just like a honeybee’s stinger. The bad news is, unlike the honeybee’s stinger, a jellyfish has thousands of tentacle barbs, each locked and loaded.

Even if the tentacle is torn off and free floating – touch it, trigger it, you’re stung. Even if the jellyfish is washed ashore and dead, touch the nerve cells and you are stung.

Fortunately, a jellyfish sting typically wanes within an hour. First-aid actions vary.

“I find one of the best treatments is, first, pull the stinger from your skin. Usually, your fingertip’s skin is too tough for the barb to penetrate,” Jones noted. “After the barb is out, submerge the wound in hot water. Heat breaks down the proteins in the venom.”

The mnemiopsis is a comb jelly – not a true jellyfish, but, because of its appearance, people often think it is. (Auburn University)

According to Auburn University, seven jellyfish are common on Alabama’s coastline: the sea nettle, moon jellyfish, cannonball, Portuguese man-of-war, oceanic jelly, sea wasp and mushroom jelly. But among the most common sightings is the comb jelly. It is cute, fascinating and fake.

“People mistake comb jellies for jellyfish because comb jellies look like jellyfish and have similar lifestyles,” Jones said. “The neat thing about comb jellies (is) if you touch one, it glows bright blue-green. A chemical reaction in their translucent bodies produces light.”

As we gaze into the Alabama Aquarium’s tank filled with comb jellies resembling living lightbulbs, he continued, “People see comb jellies at night in the gulf, by the thousands. They look like stars in the water. It is an amazing sight.”

As for our Gulf Coast stingers, the sea nettle is most common. It grows to 4 inches in diameter and has 24 tentacles. “Sea nettles eat comb jellies,” Moss said, “but they have a nasty sting.” Recipients of the nettle’s wrath compare it to a wasp sting.

Moon jellyfish, though intimidating in size, as much as 18 inches in diameter, pack a milder punch. Humans stung note it as an annoying, itchy spot on the skin.

Alabama Aquarium at the Dauphin Island Sea Lab is a good place to look at jellyfish with no risk of being stung. (Alabama Aquarium)

The cannonball jellyfish is so named because it is 10 inches in diameter and shaped like a cannonball. Though mildly venomous, it is mostly a nuisance for shrimp fishermen, clogging their nets.

But the bad boy of Gulf waters is aptly named: Portuguese man-of-war. “It has a bad attitude and a terrible sting,” Moss warned. “It can sting through your clothes and can leave a permanent scar.”

The Portuguese man-of-war’s tentacles never stop growing. Their appendages can be – and this is not a typo – 100 feet long. With its tentacles swaying in every direction, a person can be 30 feet or more away from the man-of-war and still be stung.

“Babies and people with heart conditions are in the most danger,” Moss said. “For most of us, the man-of-war is not life-threatening, but will sting with pain you will never forget.”

If you encounter one – a large purple to blue float, on the water’s surface – run, swim, whatever it takes to get away from it. Fortunately, the Portuguese menace is not as common as other jellyfish.

On the positive side, jellyfish are important to the environment. “Sea turtles love them,” Jones said. “Many fish eat them, too. In addition, lots of jellyfish eat other jellyfish.”

Jellyfish are a delicacy in Asian countries but, so far, not that popular here. Be sure to remove the stinger.

This story originally appeared in Alabama Living magazine.