Hundreds of jellyfish are discovered off the coast of the UK

Hundreds of jellyfish have been found in sea caves off the coast of south Devon, including poisonous species with powerful stings.

Darren Murray discovered the large clusters of jellyfish when kayaking in and out of darkened caves between Sharkham Point and Kingswear in south Devon.

He was shocked when he turned on his torch to find the water was full of hundreds of different types of jellyfish.

Among the species he was able to identify were several that have poisonous stings.

It comes as authorities warn families and holidaymakers to take care on beaches, with official NHS guidance advising to look out for beach signs and not touch or handle sea creatures.

Kayaker Darren Murray photographed clusters of jellyfish he found in the waters of a sea cave in south Devon

Among the species he was able to identify were several poisonous ones with a ‘nasty’ sting

When Darren found the jellyfish in the sea cave, he was able to identify four different species; compass, four ringed, barrel and mauve stinger jellyfish.

The compass jellyfish, which can give a nasty sting, were up to 6ft long with their tails.

As its name suggests, the mauve stinger also has a powerful sting that can be quite painful.

One of the species present in the waters was the compass jellyfish, which can give a nasty sting, with tails up to 6ft long

The barrel jellyfish, which can grow to 4ft, has a sting similar to that of a stinging nettle.

The four ringed or moon jellyfish are the most common in UK waters and can be seen near the surface but they do not sting.

Thankfully, Darren found the jellyfish in remote sea caves that swimmers aren’t able to reach easily.

Darren said: ‘It was quite surprising seeing different types altogether. 

‘We have kayaked many caves in the area and this was the first time we encountered clusters of them. 

‘They are beautiful creatures and an important part of the eco system. We felt lucky to witness it.’