Florida's Portuguese man o' war. This footage was taken in Central Florida in early winter. We often see these on our beaches and in the ocean this time of year. While the Portuguese man o' war looks like a jellyfish it is actually a siphonophore, which is a colony of many smaller units called zooids. All the zooids in the colony are genetically identical, but they fulfill specialized functions that allow the colony to operate as a single individual.

Disclaimer: We do not hesitate to get in the water with them if the surf is good- if you are a surfer you know you take what you can get, when you can get it! You, however, may want to take more precautions around them than we do as the sting can be painful and in extreme cases may cause rare but severe allergic reactions.

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