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Red Tide
Occurrences of Red Tide and Algae Blooms in Florida Coastal Waters
Health Concerns
As the red tide blooms approach coastal areas, the breaking waves can
cause the toxin to become mixed with sea spray. People in the coastal
areas experiencing red tide blooms can experience varying degrees of eye,
nose, and throat irritation similar to cold symptoms. When a person leaves
the red tide area, the symptoms usually go away. People with severe
or chronic respiratory conditions such as asthma or chronic lung disease
are cautioned to avoid red tide areas.
Shellfish like the bivalve mollusks; clams, oysters, and coquinas that
are harvested from red tide areas should not be eaten. These molluskan shellfish
are filter feeders that can filter large amounts of the red tide algae from
the water and concentrate the toxin producing algae in their gut. Other
seafood also commonly called shellfish such as crabs, shrimp, and lobster
can be eaten because they do not filter water and will not concentrate the
toxin. Scallops can be eaten if only the scallops muscle is eaten, as is
normally the case. Scallop stew, which would use the whole animal, should
not be eaten.
Additional Information
The location of current red tide events within Florida coastal waters as
well as links to more detailed information about red tide organisms can
be found on the Fish
and Wildlife Research lnstitute
(formerly the Florida
Marine Research Institute)
home page.
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