Portuguese Man o' War
Physalia physalis
Markings and exact colorations may vary.
A blue-violet gas float trailing long tentacles. Not a jellyfish, and dangerous even when stranded and dry.
- Typical size
- Float 3–12 in; tentacles to 30 ft
- How often it turns up
- Seasonally common
- Collecting
- Protected, do not collect
- Handling
- Possibly venomous
Do not touch, even with a stick that may flick tentacles. Keep children and dogs away. Rinse stings with seawater, not fresh water.
How to tell it apart
- Iridescent blue or pink inflated float with a crest
- Long blue tentacles, sometimes many feet
- Often strands in numbers with onshore wind
Where to find these in Florida
Beaches rated very good or excellent for tidepool life. Each page shows today’s score, the best window and access details.
- Bathtub Reef Beach · Stuart
- Anne's Beach · Islamorada
- Bahia Honda State Park · Big Pine Key
- Bathtub Beach · Stuart
- Caspersen Beach · Venice
- Curry Hammock State Park · Marathon
- Fort Zachary Taylor Historic State Park · Key West
- Harry Harris Park · Tavernier
- Higgs Beach · Key West
- John Pennekamp Coral Reef State Park · Key Largo
- Long Key State Park · Long Key
- Marineland Beach · Marineland
Found one?
Photograph it and BeachNut ranks the likely matches with a confidence read, then logs it to your collection with the beach and date.
Browsing beaches and the full field guide is free. A free account logs unlimited finds and gives you three photo identifications a day.
More tidepool life in the field guide
Get Florida beachcombing tips
Occasional emails: what's washing up, shelling tips and new BeachNut features. No spam, unsubscribe any time.