Portuguese Man o' War

ocean · weird biology · tentacles

Not one creature. The Portuguese man o' war isn't a single jellyfish, it's actually a colony of thousands of tiny creatures called polyps all stuck together, each doing its own job like a tiny underwater team.

Inflated float. At the top sits a gas-filled bubble that looks purple or blue and puffs out above the water to catch the wind and drift across oceans.

Powerful stings. Its tentacles can stretch up to 100 feet long and have venom that stings fish and small creatures, plus it can even hurt humans who touch it.

Ocean wanderers. Portuguese men o' war drift across the Atlantic, Indian, and Pacific oceans carried by currents and wind, showing up in warm waters all over the world.

Mystery species. Scientists used to think there was only one type, but new genetic testing suggests there might actually be more species hiding in the oceans.