Brown Tide in Florida - Aureoumbra lagunensis.

http://coastalscience.noaa.gov/news/habs/nccos-responds-to-harmful-algal-bloom-event-threatening-important-florida-lagoon/

NCCOS Responds to Harmful Algal Bloom Event Threatening Florida’s Indian River Lagoon

Posted on August 22nd, 2013 (1 day ago) in Ecosystem Management, Harmful Algal Blooms,Monitoring & Event Response, Rapid Response, Seagrasses, Sponsored Research

The NCCOS Harmful Algal Bloom Event Response Program approved a request supporting rapid response to a harmful algal bloom (HAB) in the Indian River Lagoon system of East Central Florida. Dr. Chris Gobler from Stonybrook University will work with the St. Johns River Water Management District to map the extent of the 2013 Brown Tide bloom in Indian River and Mosquito Lagoons. Dr. Gobler and his team will assess bloom effects on zooplankton grazing and the role of nutrients in promoting blooms, and help convene a September public forum hosted by the not-for-profit Marine Discovery Center. This follows a 2012 NCCOS Event Response effort that documented the brown tide in these Florida lagoons, previously found only in Texas, and that produced a new rapid, quantifiable genetic detection method.

http://coastalscience.noaa.gov/news/habs/harmful-algae-from-brown-tides-in-texas-now-appearing-in-florida-waters/

Harmful Algae from Brown Tides in Texas Now Appearing in Florida Waters

Posted on June 28th, 2013 (2 months ago) in Harmful Algal Blooms, Marine Biotoxin Impacts,Monitoring & Event Response, Sponsored Research

Chris Gobler Lab team member sampling the Florida brown tide in the Indian River Lagoon system. Credit: Florian Koch

A recently available in press research publication authored by NCCOS-supported Stony Brook University Professor Dr. Chris Gobler confirms the novel brown tide bloom that occurred in 2012 in the Indian River Lagoon system along the east coast of Florida was caused by the algal species Aureoumbra lagunensis.

The in press article provides results from a NCCOS funded HAB response project led by Dr. Gobler to document the first-ever occurrence of a bloom of A. lagunensis bloom in Florida, consider possible causes, and determine environmental and ecological impacts.

Dr. Gobler also developed a new rapid, quantifiable genetic detection method for A. lagunensis. Previously such blooms had only occurred in the Texas estuaries of Laguna Madre and Baffin Bay where they persisted for decades and caused major disruption.

Among the potential ecological impacts reported, juvenile northern hard clams (a.k.a. quahog) and eastern oysters filtered brown tide bloom water at lower rates than usual and juveniles that settled out to grow were significantly smaller than prior years.

Both cultured and wild populations of these shellfish species suffered mass die offs during the 2012 bloom.  The decline of the bloom was linked to near hypoxic conditions and an unusually high number of fish kills.

Brown tide in the Florida Indian River Lagoon system. Credit: Florian Koch

The study discusses the potential for further expansion of the range of A. lagunensis blooms in Florida and Georgia and for the likely re-occurrence of blooms once established in an estuary. In line with these findings, Dr. Gobler and Florida officials began tracking the return of brown tide to the Indian River Lagoon system in May of 2013.

This publication and study was supported by NCCOS Harmful Algal Bloom Event Response Program.

Red tide could become the norm

http://www.winknews.com/Local-Florida/2013-02-11/Red-tide-could-become-the-norm#.URr30x137Ss

Red tide could become the norm

Story Created: Feb 11, 2013 at 11:35 PM America/New_York

SANIBEL, FL--If you have been to the beach recently, chances are you've seen or felt the recent effects of Red Tide. Scientists say 2012 was a year with nearly non-stop cases and now wildlife experts and biologists are saying the problem is getting much worse.

This weekend, high concentrations of Red Tide were reported near Lighthouse Beach and last week extreme levels around Sanibel were reported.

A trip to the beach should be relaxing unless it's plagued with red tide.

"Irritation inside my chest, just itchy," said tourist Jane Messmer.

The dead fish, potent smell and respiratory irritation is proving to be a common thing across southwest Florida. Biologist Richard Bartleson blames increasing amounts of nutrients making their way in to the gulf which feeds the red tide blooms.

"In the past it might, the normal red tide might start in November and last a few months," said biologist RichardBartleson.

But recently, Bartleson says we have been affected by Red Tide on and off now for five straight months and each red tide bloom is lasting longer than usual.

With the growing population and infrastructure, more water runoff containing nutrients is washing to the gulf.

"The more nutrients you have, the longer the blooms can last and thats right, more normal now," said Bartleson.

A problem putting a damper on many of the daily activities for the thousands of tourists who flock to our area.

"We rented a boat for 8 hours and we came back after 6 because what we planned to do we couldn't do because of the dead fish," said Messmer.

The wildlife is also dramatically affected. In 2012, the Clinic for Rehabilitation of Wildlife (CROW) in Sanibel says they saw 439 animals like birds and sea turtles who where poisoned by red tide and that's 168 more than 2011.

"For us it is starting to become an overwhelming problem for us to where sometimes I don't have enough money and enough staff," said Dr. Heather Barron with CROW

Animal doctors are also seeing a wider variety of birds and wildlife that are being affected and scientists say its getting harder to find out what we can do prevent more red tide,in part,  because of the lack of funding.

Florida Slime Crime Tracker

Interesting website about Algal blooms in Florida

http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?hl=en&mpa=0&ctz=300&mpf=0&vps=15&ie=UTF8&oe=UTF8&msa=0&msid=211539618625491573613.0004b1b520a27d0c8cb86

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