As if beachside residents didn't have enough to worry about, with damage from back-to-back hurricanes Helene and Milton, now that bane of the Gulf waters is back.
The first confirmation of red tide was made off the Pinellas County coast late Friday by state environmental officials. High concentrations of the irritant was identified 15 miles west of Clearwater; medium concentrations west of Indian Rocks Beach, and low concentrations at three other sites off the southern Pinellas beaches.
This is the first confirmed report since last year.
Satellite imagery indicated at least two distinct patches of elevated chlorophyll offshore of Southwest Florida, one extending north from northern Pinellas, and a second southward from southern Pinellas to Charlotte County.
State environmental officials say they are working closely with researchers from the University of South Florida College of Marine Science and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration to monitor those patches.
"While it is suspected that these patches could contain red tide, without samples, we cannot confirm whether they are dominated by red tide or other algae. It should be noted that red tide was observed offshore and onshore prior to the passages of both Helene and Milton," according to a report issued late Friday.
Red tides, which scientists refer to as harmful algae blooms, occur when aquatic microorganisms grow out of control, producing toxins that can kill fish, make shellfish unsafe to eat and leave the air difficult to breathe.
Many different microorganisms cause toxic blooms in fresh and saltwater around the world, but researchers say the culprit behind Southwest Florida’s cyclical blooms is a species known as Karenia brevis.
Florida typically sees red tide off the state’s southwest coast every year in late summer or early fall, when warmer temperatures and wind conditions are more favorable for algae growth.
Experts say there are a lot of factors that can influence a harmful algae bloom, from the availability of nutrients to wind conditions to the powerful underwater currents that help power the ocean’s food chains.
“Hurricanes do bring up deeper water in the Gulf of Mexico, which has more nutrients. They also could produce a lot of rain. You have runoff from the land, which also adds nutrients,” said Richard Stumpf, an oceanographer with NOAA. “It tends to intensify a bloom that’s already there."
Hurricanes can also steer blooms ashore, even pushing them hundreds of miles up the coast, according to Stumpf.
Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.
Copyright 2024 WUSF 89.7
