Large numbers of jellyfish have been washed up on a beach, prompting a warning to the public.

Dozens of the creatures, including at least three species, were brought in by the tide at St Bees over the weekend.

Adrian Strand, of Whitehaven, spotted the creatures during a walk in the village on Sunday afternoon.

He said: "I like to walk to the tide edge when the tide is right out. I saw many dozens of jellyfish washed up on the beach, ranging in size from two to nearly 12 inches across."

Among the species Adrian captured on camera were lion's mane jellyfish, blue jellyfish and barrel jellyfish.

He said: "I was amazed to see so many jellyfish on the beach and wondered why so many had been washed up. It was a very windy day so maybe that caused so many to wash up."

Emily Baxter, senior marine conservation officer for Cumbria Wildlife Trust, said: "All of these species sting and have varying degrees of painfulness. The lion's mane is probably the one with the most painful sting."

She warned that, although jellyfish cannot survive long out of the water and usually succumb quickly to the drier conditions, it may still be possible to be stung by one on a beach, and people should avoid them and keep their children and animals away from them.

If stung, she said, people are advised to scrape off the sting using a credit card, then wash the affected area with sea water.

"They're probably washing up on the beach because we have had quite a lot of strong off-shore winds recently. There have been quite a lot washing up.

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"They can't fight against the currents in strong winds and they end up washed up on the beach.

"They usually can't survive the next tide."

Stranded jellyfish are likely to be washed back out to see on subsequent tides, but some may be left on the beach.

Jellyfish sightings can be reported to the Marine Conservation Society or to the website jellywatch.org, which records sightings of the creatures across the globe.