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Low levels of red tide found in Southwest Florida

Southwest Coast Red Tide Counts November 12 through 19, 2020
Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission
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https://myfwc.com/media/25111/swmap1120.pdf
Southwest Coast Red Tide Counts November 12 through 19, 2020

As hurricane season officially comes to an end, red tide is found

According to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, red tide was observed in Southwest Florida last week, with low concentrations found in samples from Sarasota County.

No fish kills that were reported last week are suspected to be red tide-related.

In previous years, larger red tide events have cost the southwest Florida fishing and tourism industries millions of dollars.

Red tide blooms are caused by the microscopic algae Karenia brevis, which is not considered a threat in background level concentrations. Toxic blooms of the algae can injure or kill wildlife when ingested or inhaled. Fertilizer runoff containing nitrogen and phosphorus can feed and exacerbate these harmful algae blooms.

The next complete status report will be issued on Friday, December 4th.

To report an exposure to red tide, call the Florida Poison Information Center at 1-800-222-1222. To report a fish kill, call the FWC Fish Kill Hotline at 1-800-636-0511 or look for more resources here.