Texas teen bitten by barracuda in popular vacation spot after bracelet glints in water

Sugar Land resident Claire Macdonel, 13, was swimming in shallow water when the fish bit her hand on Sunday, July 19.

The teen was wearing a shiny bracelet on one of her wrists - which likely reflected light and was mistaken by the barracuda for prey. 

Jen Macdonel, Claire Macdonel's mother, told Fox News Digital that the barracuda attack lacerated four of her daughter's tendons, in addition to a nerve and a ligament. The girl had surgery on Wednesday. 

"She could have easily lost her whole hand or fingers or worse," said Jen Macdonel. 

The teenager was doing handstands when a barracuda was likely attracted to the reflective items she was wearing, mistaking them for prey.

"You know, you're doing handstands against white sand, clear water, the sun hits that - she probably just looked like a disco ball," Jen Macdonel said.

Photos shared by the family show Claire Macdonel's hand covered in cuts and puncture wounds shortly after the bite. She wore a cast afterward as her wounds healed.

Claire Macdonel told Fox News Digital, "I just felt a lot of pressure. And then I went up. I saw my hand bleeding a lot, and I said, 'Mom, something bit me. I don't know what to do.'"

"I was just anxious, like, I was crying the whole time," she said. 

The nurse "really saved the day," Jen Macdonel told Fox News Digital.

"I was in shock, actually … I just kind of had an out-of-body experience where I knew I had to stay calm. Your mom instincts kick in," she said. 

"I was very afraid of how much blood she was losing during all of that time. I didn't know if she was going to lose her hand or her fingers or worse," the mother said.

She said she was trying not to panic, but it was a struggle.

"She's already planning our next trip so we can have a redo because we love the island, and she loves the water," Jen Macdonel said. 

"Ever since I got this bite, it has actually made me want to discover the ocean even more ... I'm even more curious about what's inside the ocean and what behavior it has," Claire Macdonel told Fox News Digital.

"I've always loved marine life, even if it's scary fish. I've always been curious about them."

Barracudas "stay still and wait for prey to swim past," said Yannis Papastamatiou, an associate professor in biological sciences at Florida International University.

Papastamatiou told Fox News Digital that barracudas respond "immediately" to anything they perceive as prey, though attacks on humans are very rare.

"For the most part, we are clearly much too large to be considered prey," he said. "But if you are wearing anything shiny, they may perceive that as the movement of a smaller fish and respond."

"If you do see a barracuda, then just avoid making sudden movements. Remember their vision is not good like ours, and they may think your hand is small prey. Barracuda bites are actually very rare."