Officials in Spain temporarily shut down popular Mediterranean beaches after rare, brightly colored, and highly venomous sea slugs appeared in the water, CNN reported.
“Contact with this marine animal can be dangerous and provoke painful burns on the skin,” Spanish police warned, per CNN, advising people to “take extreme caution and avoid direct contact with those that could appear on the sand.”
What’s happening?
The spectacularly colored blue glaucus — also known as the blue dragon, sea swallow, or blue angel — is native to the warmer tropical and subtropical waters of the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic Oceans, according to Oceana.
In recent years, however, blue dragons have been showing up on beaches in Spain and the Gulf Coast of Texas, per the Bailey-Matthews National Shell Museum & Aquarium.
While it is a subject of debate as to whether the blue dragon qualifies as an invasive species or whether these sightings are merely rare anomalies, scientists have observed that the range of the blue dragon appears to be expanding.
Blue dragons travel by floating on the ocean’s surface, spreading around the world on ocean currents and by wind, according to CNN.
Despite reaching only about 1.2 inches in length, the highly venomous, brightly colored sea slugs can paralyze prey up to 300 times their size, per CNN.
Rather than make its own venom, the blue dragon instead feeds on highly poisonous prey such as the Portuguese man o’ war, becoming toxic itself in the process, per Oceana.
Typically, blue dragon stings do not pose a life-threatening risk to humans, but experts advise keeping one’s distance and not touching the creatures, even with gloves on, according to CNN.
The blue dragons’ appearance along the Mediterranean coast in southeast Spain prompted officials to post that they had temporarily “banned all swimming on all the municipal beaches until a new order,” CNN reported.
While officials have since reopened the beaches to visitors, they have urged beachgoers to report any blue dragon sightings and to stay away from the marine animals, per CNN.
Why are blue dragons important?
Whether they qualify as an invasive species or not, the expansion of blue dragons’ range is yet another example of dramatic changes taking place in the natural world.
As global temperatures rise, many species are able to survive and even thrive in regions where they previously could not, often because temperatures previously were too cold.
These newcomer plants and animals outcompete native species, disrupting delicate ecosystems and even causing some native species to go extinct.
Invasive species also spread deadly diseases, threaten food supplies, disrupt trade, and hurt local economies.
According to France’s National Center for Scientific Research, known by its French acronym CNRS, biological invaders account for 60% percent of all species extinctions.
Human activity is a key cause behind these biological invasions.
“In all cases, human factors ranging from excessive international transport, the over-exploitation of natural resources and imbalances created in ecosystems right up to climate change are driving this vast increase … of exotic species,” said Martine Hossaert-McKey, an ecologist, in a piece published on the CNRS website.
What’s being done about biological invaders?
To reduce the spread of biological invaders on a global scale would require turning the tide on rising global temperatures. To do so, humans around the world must take steps to meaningfully reduce the amount of heat-trapping pollution entering the atmosphere.
While driving an EV or installing solar panels on your home can help reduce planet-warming pollution, there also are ways to directly help native species right in your own backyard.
For example, by planting a native garden or rewilding your yard, you can save money on water and landscaping costs while also providing vital food, shelter, and habitat for native species including pollinators, small mammals, and birds.
Join our free newsletter for good news and useful tips, and don’t miss this cool list of easy ways to help yourself while helping the planet.