Weever

Today I went swimming during my lunch break and got stung on my foot by a weever. It hurt a lot, but luckily the beach bar wasn't far away and they were able to help me with internet for research (because I did not see anything like described further down) and hot water.

So I found out from the symptoms and how and where it happened, that it was a weever. This is what I learned:

Most human stings are inflicted by the lesser weever, which habitually remains buried in sandy areas of shallow water and is thus more likely to come into contact with bathers than other species (such as the greater weever, which prefers deeper water). Even very shallow water (sometimes little more than damp sand) may harbour lesser weevers. The vast majority of injuries occur to the foot and are the result of stepping on buried fish; other common sites of injury are the hands and buttocks.

Stings are most common in the hours before and after low tide (especially at springs), so one possible precaution is to avoid bathing or paddling at these times. Weever stings have been known to penetrate wet suit boots even through a rubber sole (if thin), and bathers and surfers should wear sandals, "jelly shoes", or wetsuit boots with relatively hard soles, and avoid sitting or "rolling" in the shallows. Stings also increase in frequency during the summer (to a maximum in August), but this is probably the result of the greater number of bathers.

At first many victims believe they have simply scratched themselves on a sharp stone or shell, although this barely hurts; significant pain begins 2–3 minutes afterwards. Weever stings cause severe pain; common descriptions from victims are "extremely painful" and "much worse than a wasp or bee sting".

Although extremely unpleasant, weever stings are not generally dangerous and the pain will ease considerably within a few hours even if untreated. Complete recovery may take a week or more; in a few cases, victims have reported swelling and/or stiffness persisting for months after envenomation.

First aid treatment consists of immersing the affected area in hot water (as hot as the victim can tolerate without being scalded), which will accelerate denaturation of the protein-based venom. The use of hot water will reduce the pain felt by the victim after a few minutes. Usual experience is that the pain then fades within 10 to 20 minutes, as the water cools. Folklore often suggests the addition of substances to the hot water, including urine, vinegar, and Epsom salts, but this is of limited or no value. Heat should be applied for at least 15 minutes, but the longer the delay (before heat is applied), the longer the treatment should be continued. Once the pain has eased, the injury should be checked for the remains of broken spines, and any found need to be removed.

So let's see how this evolves, I'll keep you posted.Read more