Some beautiful but dangerous sea creatures are washing up on Texas beaches again and visitors are being urged to leave them alone. KSAT reported that this is the second time in two years that the creatures are being spotted.
Blue gaucus, more commonly called blue dragons, are typically a pretty rare find, according to University of Texas Marine Science Institute Reserve Director Jace Tunnell. Tunnell explained, "Before the discovery of the blue dragons in 2020 I had never even seen or heard of one."
The creatures are a type of nudibranch or sea slug. They may look harmless, but you won't want to touch these creatures.
PINS park officials said after the initial discovery in 2020, "Blue dragons are a predator of the Portuguese man-of-war. After eating, they move the stinging cells from the man-of-war to the end of their ‘fingers.’ Because they concentrate the stinging cells together, their sting can be more painful than a man-of-war’s."
Officials with the Mission-Aransas Reserve posted photos of the creatures on Facebook. The Facebook post states:
"We’ve got a number of cool finds washing up this week. We recorded 4 blue dragons (species of sea slug) in a 100 meter stretch of beach just north of Bob Hall Pier. Do not touch these animals, they feed on Man-o-Wars and sting just as bad. We also see lots of blue buttons and some storm snails that feed on the blue buttons."