Chief Investigator
Chironex fleckeri poses the greatest threat to humans in tropical waters of Australia. This application is a follow up for a proposal submitted to LIONS in 2024. Our focus was, and continues to be, on the deadly stinger. There are four elements to the proposed study (1) determine the risk for envenomation near Eimeo Beach, Mackay where there was a fatality in February 2022. This would be done by sampling eDNA at locations we sampled in 2025; (2) sample near beaches, rocky headlands, and estuarine areas, within locations, to determine relative levels of risk; (3) compare our newly developed rapid tests with the established qPCR workflow; (4) expand our study of stingers in a replicate winter to determine the source of jellyfish from the Pioneer river (Mackay) north over a 20 km stretch of coastline that includes Eimeo Beach. With greater information on the polyp stage, we can determine if the source of jellyfish is distant to areas where swimmers are threatened. It is our view that an extra trip and treated analyses would make the study publishable and therefore widely accessible.
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Australian Lions Foundation
10000
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