Rick Bartleson gets asked every year: Will red tide ruin my Southwest Florida stay?
Would-be vacationers from up north on the verge of a week on the Gulf Coast start seeing headlines about red tide and panic – understandably. So they call the Sanibel-Captiva Conservation Foundation research scientist for the inside scoop. Few are as close to the daily details as Bartleson, who regularly samples the region s saltwater for harmful algal blooms like Karenia brevis and other water-fouling microorganisms.
Bartleson can t offer any guarantees, especially lately.
For more than a month, red tide has been lingering in patches along the Southwest Florida coastline from Marco Island to Captiva and beyond. In high enough concentrations, it can make a day – or a week – at the beach miserable. In some places, it s killing fish.
Red tide patches move along Southwest Florida coast
Fort Myers News-Press
Sporadic reports of fish kills and respiratory irritation point to patches of red tide off the coast of Southwest Florida, aligning with data researchers have collected this week.
Dead fish spotted were at Bonita Beach Friday morning and high counts of red tide, caused by the organism Karenia brevis, were reported along Sanibel earlier this week.
“It hasn’t looked good for most of the week,” said Rick Bartleson, research scientist with the Sanibel-Captiva Conservation Foundation. “It started out pretty bad on Monday with about 20 million cells per liter, a significant jump from last week so I started increasing sampling.”
Red tide patches move along Southwest Florida coast
Video: Here s the difference between red tide and blue-green algae
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Sporadic reports of fish kills and respiratory irritation point to patches of red tide off the coast of Southwest Florida, aligning with data researchers have collected this week.
Dead fish spotted were at Bonita Beach Friday morning and high counts of red tide, caused by the organism Karenia brevis, were reported along Sanibel earlier this week.
“It hasn’t looked good for most of the week,” said Rick Bartleson, research scientist with the Sanibel-Captiva Conservation Foundation. “It started out pretty bad on Monday with about 20 million cells per liter, a significant jump from last week so I started increasing sampling.”
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