Clean Water Network Florida

Clean Water Network of Florida

Issues - Red Tide

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Red Tide

Red tide suspected in shark deaths

Dead sharks are crashing the area's spring break party.

Dozens of juvenile bonnethead sharks and stingrays washed ashore Tuesday on Fort Myers Beach and Lovers Key State Park. As many as 25 sharks between 1 and 2 feet in length were reported on the shore of Lovers Key alone.

A Message from Stuart DeCew, Florida Sierra Club

Hello to all,

Along the Gulf Coast we have traded one noxious red menace, red tide, for a stinking rotting red mess, red drift algae, which is now coating beaches from Sanibel to Siesta Key. Below is an article from today’s Sarasota Herald Tribune on the issue and also a link to yesterday's Ft. Myers News Press on the same issue. Please keep your eyes and ears open for other news of these blooms washing ashore. From everything that we are hearing from charter boat captains like Captain Wayne Genthner this could get even worse this year.

What is red drift algae?

All algae are similar to plants in that they need sunlight and nutrients to grow. Algae can be microscopic or very large, and red drift algae ranges on the large side.

Where does red drift algae come from?

It is a natural part of the ocean, but in recent years it has begun to grow in more abundance than usual. It feeds off nutrients. Scientists believe increasing pollution from overfertilized lawns, septic tanks, farms, phosphate mines and sewer outfalls all add nutrients to the Gulf that cause the algae to proliferate.

Is red drift algae harmful?

Unlike red tide, a microscopic algae, red drift is not toxic. Some species of red drift algae are edible. But by the time it washes up on the beach, it is often dead and rotting. That's why it stinks. Swimming in anything that is rotting can cause rashes in some people.