PEOPLE are being warned not to touch a potentially deadly sea creature after one washed up on a beach in west Dorset.

The Portuguese man-of-war is a close relative of the jellyfish and there have been reports throughout the south west of them washing up on beaches.

Stings from it can be exceptionally painful and in extreme cases fatal.

The Marine Conservation Society has received several report of men-of-war washing up on beaches in Cornwall and Scilly Isles with one also sighted in Burton Bradstock.

One of the creatures was found on the beach earlier this month and was reported to the Marine Conservation Society, who are calling for people to keep safe if they see one.

The MCS is asking people to report any sightings to them as are the Dorset Wildlife Trust.

Following recent publicity of sightings in Cornwall, the Scilly Isles and Ireland, a local vicar contacted the MCS to report the creature seen at Burton Bradstock.

The men-of-war are only occasionally reported in UK waters with the last significant UK strandings of species occurring in 2009 and 2012.

Dr Peter Richardson, head of the MCS biodiversity programme, said: "We don’t receive reports of Portuguese man-of-war every year, but when we do they can turn up in big numbers, usually around about this time of year.

"In the last couple of weeks we’ve received several confirmed reports of Portuguese man of war stranded on beaches around Cornwall and the Scilly Isles.

"With the earlier strandings in Ireland, these recent sightings could herald the arrival of more of the creatures as they get blown in from the Atlantic.”

While to creature may look like a jellyfish to the untrained eye it is only closely related.

It consists of a colony of floating hyrdozoans, lots of really tiny marine organisms living together and behaving collectively as one animal.

A Cornish pasty-shaped, transparent purple float is visible on the water's surface whilst the blue, tentacle-like "fishing polyps" that hang below the float can be tens of metres in length.

Dr Richardson said: "It’s the tentacle-like polyps that can give an agonising and potentially lethal sting.

“Because a stranded Portuguese Man of War looks a bit like a deflating purple balloon with blue ribbons attached, children will find it fascinating."

He added that people should make sure no children pick them up.

If you spot a Portuguese man-of-war then report the sighting immediately, ideally with a picture, to www.mcsuk.org, where a jellyfish ID guide, which includes the Portuguese man-of-war, can also be downloaded.