FloridaRed Tide

We told you last month that a very grim summer was predicted for the folks up in Maine. Looks like it has started early. Here’s an excerpt from a press release from the people at the Woods Hole:

Yesterday, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution senior scientist Donald Anderson told the Cape Cod Times that some small amounts of red tide toxins, below the level where it affects human or animal health, have begun showing up in shellfish along the North Shore and in one salt pond on the Cape.

Anderson said it is not clear yet whether March’s heavy rains, which wash nutrients off the land, will help feed a major red tide bloom if one develops. Northeast winds from storms also can aid a red tide outbreak by concentrating the algae along the shore, but Anderson said it was still unknown whether that was happening. Research cruises to gauge the size, location and spread of red tide blooms have not been scheduled to start until May 1.

Yesterday, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution senior scientist Donald Anderson told the Cape Cod Times that some small amounts of red tide toxins, below the level where it affects human or animal health, have begun showing up in shellfish along the North Shore and in one salt pond on the Cape.

Anderson said it is not clear yet whether March’s heavy rains, which wash nutrients off the land, will help feed a major red tide bloom if one develops. Northeast winds from storms also can aid a red tide outbreak by concentrating the algae along the shore, but Anderson said it was still unknown whether that was happening. Research cruises to gauge the size, location and spread of red tide blooms have not been scheduled to start until May 1.

They say they’ll have a little more information after they gather and analyze samples form the area waters off the coast of Maine and further offshore.