They’re out to get you, so beware!

Freo Today. 11 February 2025. If you happened to head down to your favourite Freo beach this morning, as our Jean Hudson did to Leighton, you’d have found it pretty much deserted, as Jean did Leighton. Today’s weather is off-putting, as are the Bluebottles. It seems the weather has brought in the Bluebottles in large numbers. Jean says there are ‘millions of them’ at Leighton. The Bluebottle is our common name for what is also called a Portuguese man o’ war (Physalia physalis). It’s a marine hydrozoan found in the Atlantic Ocean and the Indian Ocean, and today all around Freo beaches. Beware, even standing on one can sting your foot. The one Jean snapped here, has a ‘head’ of about 2.5 cm or 1”, and a trailing tentacle of around 30 cm or 12 “. They’re out to get you, so beware!