Director of Sarasota Bay Estuary Program points out red tide not nearly as bad as in recent past
From 14 samples cited in its updates on Nov. 22 and Nov. 26 to six in its Dec. 4 report, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) has continued to detect bloom concentrations of the red tide algae Karenia brevis in Southwest and Northwest Florida.
No update was provided on Nov. 29 because of the Thanksgiving holiday weekend, the agency noted.
On Dec. 4, FWC said that, over the previous seven days, it had found bloom concentrations of Karenia brevis in two samples from Sarasota County, one collected offshore of Citrus County, one from Pinellas County, and two from Charlotte County.
A week earlier, on Nov. 26 — also reflecting data from the prior week — the agency noted bloom concentrations in nine samples from Sarasota County, one from Hillsborough County, and four from Manatee County. On Nov. 22 — again, with data from the previous seven days — the agency said that Sarasota County had the highest number of bloom concentration samples: eight. The others noted were as follows: two collected offshore of Pinellas County, two from and offshore of Hillsborough County, and two from Manatee County.
Altogether, FWC pointed out in its Nov. 22 report, Karenia brevis was detected in 65 samples collected from Florida’s Gulf Coast. On Nov. 26, the figure was 73. By Dec. 4, the number had dropped to 49.
In its Nov. 26 update, FWC wrote, “Several distinct, offshore patches of elevated chlorophyll were visible in satellite data from November 25 …” Those were seen 12 to 22 miles off Manatee and northern Sarasota counties, 25 to 30 miles off parts of Dixie, Levy and Citrus counties, 30 to 35 miles off parts of Hernando and Pasco counties, and 10 to 20 miles off northern Lee County.
“Recent observations from earlier this month suggest that these patches likely contain red tide, but conditions continue to be dynamic over space and time and until we have samples, we cannot confirm,” the agency added in that report.
Then the Dec. 4 update said, “We are continuing to use satellite chlorophyll imagery [provided by the University of South Florida and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s National Centers for Coastal Ocean Science (NCCOS)] to track this patchy bloom. Imagery from December 2 reveals that small offshore chlorophyll patches persist between the Panhandle and Collier County, but intensity appears to be less than observed last week, and remains at moderate levels.”
Further, the Dec. 4 update noted that over the past week in Southwest Florida, K. brevis was observed at background to medium concentrations in Sarasota County, background to medium concentrations in and offshore of Pinellas County, background to low concentrations in Manatee County, low to medium concentrations in Charlotte County, and background and very low concentrations in Lee County.
The Nov. 26 report said that in Southwest Florida over the prior seven days, K. brevis was observed at background to high concentrations in Sarasota County, background to low concentrations in Pinellas County, medium concentrations in Hillsborough County, very low to medium concentrations in Manatee County, and low concentrations in Charlotte County.
On Nov. 22, the FWC update noted that K. brevis had been observed at very low to medium concentrations in Manatee and Sarasota counties, background to medium concentrations in and offshore of Pinellas County, medium concentrations in and offshore of Hillsborough County, low concentrations in Charlotte County, background to very low concentrations offshore of Lee County, and background concentrations offshore of Monroe County.
Further, Sarasota County was the only county cited as the source of reports of respiratory irritation from red tide in the Nov. 22 and Nov. 26 reports. The Dec. 4 update noted respiratory irritation accounts for Pinellas County, as well.
As for fish kills: The agency wrote in its Nov. 26 report that incidents suspected to be related to red tide had been reported to its Fish Kill Hotline and other partners over the past seven days along the Sarasota County coastline. The Nov. 22 update noted fish kill reports linked to red tide from both Sarasota and Manatee counties. The Dec. 4 report cited Pinellas County as the only county in Southwest Florida from which fish kills suspected to be related to red tide had been documented.
Additionally, the Dec. 4 update pointed out that forecasts by “the USF-FWC Collaboration for Prediction of Red Tides predict net southern movement of surface waters and southeastern transport of subsurface waters in most areas over the next 3.5 days, from Pinellas County to northern Monroe County. These currents could move existing populations of K. brevis further south.”
In a note on the Sarasota Estuary Bay Program website posted on Nov. 27, the day before start of the Thanksgiving holiday weekend, Executive Director David Tomasko wrote, “Go out onto the bay this weekend. There’s a bit of red tide around, that’s true, but compare it to how we were during the 2021 red tide, or the 2017 to 2019 red tide event — what we have now — after a year with four SERIOUS weather events — it’s not even close to as bad as it has been in prior years. Look for dead fish and/or smelly macroalgae out on the bay, and you’ll find them to be much less common than was the case a few years ago.”
FWC encourages individuals to visit its Geographic Information System-based “daily sample map at https://myfwc.com/redtidemap/ for the most up-to-date information on where red tide has been observed over the past 8 days. This map is updated four times a day and will capture samples processed beyond this mid-week status update. Individual sample details can be obtained by zooming into an area of interest and clicking on each sample dot. “
More details are available on the FWC Fish and Wildlife Research Institute (FWRI) red tide website, the agency notes. The website provides links, as well, to additional information related to the topic of red tide in Florida, FWC points out, “including satellite imagery, experimental red tide forecasts, shellfish harvesting areas, the FWC Fish Kill Hotline, the Florida Poison Information Center (to report human health effects related to exposure to red tide), and other wildlife related hotlines.”