A Portuguese man o’ war was spotted in the River Dart on Sunday, September 24. It was seen 200 yards north of the Town’s Jetty by the Dartmouth Navigation and River Authority staff.

These creatures have tentacle-like polyps that can give an agonizing and potentially lethal sting and must not be touched.

Reports of Portuguese man o’ war washing up on beaches in the UK over the last week have been steadily increasing. Marine Conservation Society jellyfish expert, Dr Peter Richardson, said: ‘This is now the biggest mass Portuguese man o’ war stranding since 2012.

“Portuguese man o’ war are only occasionally reported in UK waters, but this is the second consecutive year they have turned up in numbers.

“Last year, they were spotted in September on beaches in the South West UK, with significant strandings of the species also reported in in 2009 and 2012.

“The Portuguese man o’ War isn’t a jellyfish but is closely related, and consists of a floating colony of hydrozoans, several tiny marine organisms living together and behaving collectively as if one animal.

“A purple float, shaped a little like a Cornish pasty, is visible on the water’s surface whilst blue, tentacle-like ‘fishing polyps’ hang below; these can be tens of metres in length.

For advice on what to do if you spot one, visit the Marine Conservation Society website: