Scientists Measure Red Tide Outbreak (this SHOULD be Nat'l)

[NashVegas]

but it's remained a regional story in New England & Fla, it seems.

Scientists were trying to measure the size of a red tide outbreak after about 40 reports of dead ocean life at the bottom of the Gulf of Mexico off the Southwest Florida coast.

Since the beginning of August, the Fish and Wildlife Research Institute in St. Petersburg has received reports of mass destruction of sea life in areas ranging from southern Hernando County to northern Sarasota County.

http://www.theledger.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20050814/NEWS/508140382/1004

Hellish for shellfish: Scientists brace for worst red tide yet


The disastrous red tide that swept through Bay State waters this summer, crippling shellfishing and nearly doubling clam prices, planted seeds for possible future outbreaks that could be even worse, scientists fear.
Bay State researchers say the massive toxic algae bloom that led to shellfish-bed shutdowns from Maine to Nantucket in July left microscopic cysts on the ocean floor that could develop into more potentially deadly red tide in months.

http://news.bostonherald.com/localRegional/view.bg?articleid=97945


Red tide suspected in deaths of ten sea turtles

CLEARWATER, Fla. -- Ten sea turtles found dying on Pinellas County beaches might have been suffering from red tide poisoning, officials said.

...
Major red tide outbreaks kill fish, marine mammals and water birds and can cause breathing problems in humans. Red tide poisoning killed 29 manatees off Fort Myers over a 10-day period in March.

[cornermouse]

1. Bush doesn't believe in the environment...therefore it doesn't exist.

See how easy it is? I can't believe we have 3 more years of this garbage.

[Nay]

2. I grew up in Largo/Clearwater, so this is unbelievably sad to me.

When I was a child, there was the occasional red tide, but nothing like this. I remember the abundance of sea life well, and going back there about 5 years ago was shocking -- there really isn't anything left of the sea life, or the land life either. 45 years ago, fishing ships (the small, local kind!) used to occasionally drag their nets on shore, allowing us locals to come on down with buckets and get ourselves gobs of fresh seafood. And the blue crabs we used to catch and have for dinner! No more.

[rodeodance]

3. so sad to hear--thanks.

[blue sky at night]

5. I like what you said there.......

land life! Yep, we are next I am afraid.

[H5N1]

11. I went diving in that area several years back. It is pretty shocking.

and very sad

[sintax]

4. Nominated-Need More Everyone should see this

and how it is connected to everything else.

Thank You

[Toots]

6. I live in a coastal community and have seen numerous red tides.

I have never seen any deaths of marine life from those algae blooms. PSP (paralytic shellfish poisoning) is much more prevalent during such times and people are warned not to eat the shellfish but it has never effected other fish or marine mammals as far as I have ever been aware of. Something else is at play here.

[jus_the_facts]

7. Divers In Gulf Report `Zero Things' Alive........

http://news.tbo.com/news/MGB7OVBE8CE.html

August 11, 2005

Clearwater - Diver Mike Miller struggles to convey the horror he has seen on the ocean floor. He struggles because there are only so many ways you can say dead. ``I´m talking zero things are alive out there,´´ Miller said. ``The only way to describe it is a nuclear bomb.´´

Miller and other alarmed divers say they have documented a dead zone 20 miles offshore in the Gulf waters from Johns Pass to Clearwater. This information, combined with an unprecedented number of dead turtles washing up on Pinellas County beaches this week, has divers, fishermen and scientists worried that red tide is killing more efficiently.

``Normally when we get a red tide, you can go a little north or a little west or south or someplace else and dive,´´ said Ben Dautermen, who takes divers out of Clearwater on his charter boat. ``Usually it doesn´t kill every single thing.´´

Red tide, an algae toxic to fish and an irritant to humans who breathe its choking vapors, has hung stubbornly to Florida´s west coast for close to three months. Miller and other longtime locals who make their living in the Gulf say it´s the worst outbreak in their experience.

Though it´s not certain that red tide killed the turtles, scientists at the Fish & Wildlife Research Institute in St. Petersburg think the toxic algae wiped out sea life, creating the dead zone Miller and other divers discovered.

The scientists´ theory goes like this: Red tide cells don´t like to pass through water temperature differences of more than 2 degrees. Scientists think a thermocline, or zone of cold water, formed above the warmer water at the bottom, holding the algae bloom there longer than it naturally would stay. The toxic atmosphere worsened as dead organisms such as crabs and shellfish decomposed, consuming dissolved oxygen in the water.

Lake said the institute sent 10 biologists Wednesday for a three-day cruise to gather information on the dead zone and the status of the red tide.

[slay]

8. Yeah - this could be some seriously bad news

Not good at all. :(

[jus_the_facts]

14. 08/05/05"Strange fish parade seen in Englewood"......

http://sun-herald.com/Newsheadline.cfm?headline=6413&banner=1
08/05/05
"Strange fish parade seen in Englewood"


ENGLEWOOD -- A bizarre freeway of fish swimming by the thousands
along the shore of Englewood Beach Thursday morning left crowds of
beach-goers agog and marine biologists bewildered.

"I´ve lived her for 10 years, and I´ve never seen anything like
this. It´s incredible," said Bob Ricci of Englewood.

Beach-goers reported that a wide variety of sea creatures came
swimming south in a narrow band close to the beach at mid-morning.

Included in the swarm were clouds of shrimp, crab, grouper, snapper,
red fish and flounder. They were joined by more usual species,
including sea robins, needlefish and eels.

Ten-year Manasota Key resident Nick Neidlinger spotted the commotion
from his condominium shortly before 9 a.m.

The fish were moving in a narrow band in about 18 inches of water,
he said. They were headed south, and, so far as he could tell, the
moving mass of sea life stretched a good mile long.

"We´re talking thousands and thousands of them," Neidlinger
said. "It was so thick we couldn´t walk out."

Some fish washed ashore on the Gulf´s small waves, he said. The
stranded fish flipped and struggled until they flopped back into the
water to rejoin the piscatorial parade south.

"There were blue crabs the size of a dinner plate," Neidlinger
said. "You name the species of fish and they were there."

Neidlinger said more than 100 pelicans bombarded the fish, but he
saw no sharks or other predators, nor did he detect any signs of red
tide.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
....this was a precursor I'd say?! :(

[slay]

15. Very creepy

But no sir - no global warming or polution problems here. Nothing to see people. Just buy your SUV's and shop at Wal-Mart like a good little American and move along.

Ugh. It really pisses me off that our corporate media covers stupid shit like "the runaway bride" constantly while serious important problems like this continue to go on and are basically ignored. :(

[loudsue]

17. The "runaway bride" is so much more educational to our people.

:sarcasm:

The dumbing down of America.


:kick::kick::kick:

[KayLaw]

20. OMG

The fish parade story is one of the strangest things I've ever heard.

[meganmonkey]

9. This is some seriously scary shit

And really really sad.

When will this society wake up to the fact that we are interconnected to the whole planet, we are part of the planet? When will they stop writing people off who talk about interconnectedness as new-agey hippie tree-huggers and realize it is a simple, physical relationship that cannot be denied no matter how much time we spend in climate-control spaces eating over-processed food, no matter how many steps we can remove ourselves from the gritty reality that we are just another animal on this planet that relies on the overall health of the planet for our very survival?

:cry:

(edit for spelling, there was no hope trying to fix my ridiculous run-on sentence ;) )

[Karenina]

13. Never mind Japan has been dumping

radioactive waste into the ocean for DECADES!!! I read about it as a youngster, got TOTALLY bent out of shape, everyone patted me on the head and said I was "too serious" and surely the practice continues to this day. I ain't lookin' it up cuz I ALREADY KNOW.

[donsu]

10. tick, tick, tick

nt

[okoboji]

12. ok .... putting on my tin-foil hat here

some vast government experiment ... to rid the sea life in those spots, so they can then go in and drill for oil

[JCMach1]

16. Massive freswater releases (filled with nutrients from big Sugar)

are fueling this.

I was in Sanibel just one week ago. The water was disgusting (like stagnant swamp water instead of ocean) and there were NO SHELLS.

:(

Another part of paradise destroyed.

[loudsue]

18. This thread is so important! People need to bookmark this.

Glaciers melting at alarming rates, huge red tides, parades of sea animals swimming together, in a thin line, just off shore, a mile long....

Folks: we're in some SERIOUS trouble here.

Recommending & kicking

:kick::kick::kick:

[Zorra]

22. Very serious trouble. The question is: How do we stop republicans

and other fascists from further destroying our planet?

[kestrel91316]

23. I suggest liberal use of guillotines.

:evilgrin:

[barbaraann]

19. 43 of the world's 146 coastal dead zones are off the US coast

Here's a very good article about these dead zones with photos.

http://www.snre.umich.edu/news/deadzones.pdf

[ConcernedCanuk]

24. Very enlightening, albeit disturbing study (the pdf file)

.
.
.

And it's written July 2005

Our nitrogen fertilizers appear to be the culprit, or rather our over use and abuse of them

A well written article in understandable language

A good read indeed

[niallmac]

21. Has anyone noticed that the enviro crises is only

happening on BBC and other non U.S. corporate dominated news bureaus with updates on the ice shelf, sea and atmospheric temps etc and CNN
can't find time for much of it at all? Is our half of the planet doing a lot better than their half?
If so, isn't that nice though. :eyes: