"In a TikTok video, a man who goes by the name Alexa shared a clip of himself licking a 'slimy' creature without realizing it was a deadly Portuguese Man O' War jellyfish.
People were left stunned because the 'slimy' creature he held and, shockingly, licked posed a deadly threat. This jellyfish-like animal turned out to be a deadly Portuguese Man O' War, nicknamed the 'floating terror.'
In the video, the man can be seen poking and prodding the balloon-like, translucent creature filled with a blue liquid and adorned with long, stringy tentacles.
At one point, he said: Look guys, a jellyfish is still here."
He also touches the creature, and says: "Oh my gosh it's so cold and so slimy, I'm going to pick it up."
He proceeds to pinch it between his fingers, stating, "Yep, it's a jellyfish, look how big it is.
"And it's still moving, oh my god, I'm going to lick it."
At the end of the video, people were shocked when he stuck his tongue out, ready to touch it.
He completely realized the Portuguese Man O' War's lethal nature. These creatures can grow up to 12 inches in length and five inches in width, with tentacles extending a staggering 165 feet.
Their venom is employed to paralyze and eliminate prey, inflicting 'excruciating pain' for days if they sting a human. While rare, man-of-war incidents have led to human fatalities.
Upon viewing the video, other TikTok users expressed concern for his health, with some saying he had made a big mistake.
One person said: It is just a bluebottle, just gives a nasty sting for a bit, but then you're right. Every Aussie kid under the sun has been stung! Rite of passage!
A second wrote: If you think a Man o' war is "one of the most dangerous jellyfish in the ocean", then you've missed the point that it's not actually a jellyfish. And not very deadly (e.g., compared to a box jellyfish, or Irukandji). Still a bit dumb to lick it though...
A third wrote: He only licked the top. Which has no stingers. You can pick them up by the top safely. We (Australia) often do to move them away from the tide line or get them out of ocean pools. Even if it stings you, a small sting is not that bad. Only dangerous if you get lots of really long tentacles on you.
Someone else said: Portuguese man-o-war is only deadly if you have a severe allergic reaction. You can literally pick them up by the bubble and not get stung. The tentacles leave pretty good stinging welts though.
