‘Feels like fire.’ Stinging, centipede-like creatures appear on TX beach, experts warn

Centipede-like sea creatures with an excruciating venomous sting have arrived at a Texas beach, experts warn.

“Your worst nightmares are washing up right now,” the Harte Research Institute for Gulf of Mexico Studies said in an Aug. 14 Facebook post, sharing photos of the wicked-looking new arrivals.

They’re called bearded fireworms, a name that fits their look as well as their reputation, and researchers found them during a recent visit to Mustang Island — a barrier island that’s a roughly 25-mile drive east from Corpus Christi.

Few people ever see them unless they set out into the ocean to find them, but unusual circumstances brought the bearded fireworms to shore, according to the Institute.

“We’ve found a few of these marine polychaetes, sometimes called bristle worms, washing up over the past couple of days on large logs,” researchers said. “The logs these were found on had gooseneck barnacles all over them, which might have been what the worms were feeding on.”

And now that they’re here, researchers are warning beachgoers to be careful, as the worms can cause intense pain if touched. Hollow bristles filled with neurotoxin line each worm’s segmented body from end to end, like tiny venom-filled syringes, according to researchers.

“The fireworms get their name because of the pain they inflict on anyone that dares to touch them; it literally feels like fire for about three hours,” the Institute said.

They generally grow up to about 4 inches in length, but are known to grow as long as 14 inches, according to iNaturalist. Its painful bristles aren’t always at the ready, but are instead “flared out when the worm is disturbed.”

Besides causing a burning sensation, its powerful venom can also cause dizziness and nausea for several hours, according to iNaturalist.

Even after the worst effects subside, the ordeal isn’t over, the Institute said.

“Your skin can feel sensitive in the sting site for weeks depending on where it stung you.”

This story was originally published August 15, 2024 at 12:37 PM with the headline "‘Feels like fire.’ Stinging, centipede-like creatures appear on TX beach, experts warn."