
A harmful algal bloom (HAB), or excessive algae growth, sometimes called a red tide in marine environments, is an
algal bloom that causes negative impacts to other organisms by production of natural
algae-produced toxins,
water deoxygenation, mechanical damage to other organisms, or by other means. HABs are sometimes defined as only those algal blooms that produce toxins, and sometimes as any algal bloom that can result in severely lower
oxygen levels in natural waters, killing organisms in
marine or
fresh water
Fresh water or freshwater is any naturally occurring liquid or frozen water containing low concentrations of dissolved salt (chemistry), salts and other total dissolved solids. The term excludes seawater and brackish water, but it does include ...
s.
Blooms can last from a few days to many months. After the bloom dies, the
microbes
A microorganism, or microbe, is an organism of microscopic size, which may exist in its single-celled form or as a colony of cells. The possible existence of unseen microbial life was suspected from antiquity, with an early attestation in ...
that decompose the dead algae use up more of the oxygen, generating a "
dead zone" which can cause
fish die-offs. When these zones cover a large area for an extended period of time, neither fish nor plants are able to survive.
It is sometimes unclear what causes specific HABs as their occurrence in some locations appears to be entirely natural,
while in others they appear to be a result of human activities.
In certain locations there are links to particular drivers like nutrients, but HABs have also been occurring since before humans started to affect the environment. HABs are induced by
eutrophication
Eutrophication is a general term describing a process in which nutrients accumulate in a body of water, resulting in an increased growth of organisms that may deplete the oxygen in the water; ie. the process of too many plants growing on the s ...
, which is an
overabundance of nutrients in the water. The two most common nutrients are fixed nitrogen (
nitrate
Nitrate is a polyatomic ion with the chemical formula . salt (chemistry), Salts containing this ion are called nitrates. Nitrates are common components of fertilizers and explosives. Almost all inorganic nitrates are solubility, soluble in wa ...
s,
ammonia
Ammonia is an inorganic chemical compound of nitrogen and hydrogen with the chemical formula, formula . A Binary compounds of hydrogen, stable binary hydride and the simplest pnictogen hydride, ammonia is a colourless gas with a distinctive pu ...
, and
urea
Urea, also called carbamide (because it is a diamide of carbonic acid), is an organic compound with chemical formula . This amide has two Amine, amino groups (–) joined by a carbonyl functional group (–C(=O)–). It is thus the simplest am ...
) and
phosphate
Phosphates are the naturally occurring form of the element phosphorus.
In chemistry, a phosphate is an anion, salt, functional group or ester derived from a phosphoric acid. It most commonly means orthophosphate, a derivative of orthop ...
.
The excess nutrients are emitted by
agriculture
Agriculture encompasses crop and livestock production, aquaculture, and forestry for food and non-food products. Agriculture was a key factor in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created ...
, industrial pollution, excessive
fertilizer use in urban/suburban areas, and associated
urban runoff
Urban runoff is surface runoff of rainwater, landscape irrigation, and car washing created by urbanization. Impervious surfaces (roads, parking lots and sidewalks) are constructed during land development. During rain, storms, and other Precipitati ...
. Higher water temperature and low circulation also contribute.
HABs can cause significant harm to animals, the environment and economies. They have been increasing in size and frequency worldwide, a fact that many experts attribute to global
climate change
Present-day climate change includes both global warming—the ongoing increase in Global surface temperature, global average temperature—and its wider effects on Earth's climate system. Climate variability and change, Climate change in ...
. The U.S.
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA ) is an American scientific and regulatory agency charged with Weather forecasting, forecasting weather, monitoring oceanic and atmospheric conditions, Hydrography, charting the seas, ...
(NOAA) predicts more harmful blooms in the
Pacific Ocean
The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five Borders of the oceans, oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean, or, depending on the definition, to Antarctica in the south, and is ...
. Potential remedies include chemical treatment, additional reservoirs, sensors and monitoring devices, reducing nutrient runoff, research and management as well as monitoring and reporting.
Terrestrial runoff, containing fertilizer, sewage and livestock wastes, transports abundant nutrients to the seawater and stimulates bloom events. Natural causes, such as river floods or
upwelling
Upwelling is an physical oceanography, oceanographic phenomenon that involves wind-driven motion of dense, cooler, and usually nutrient-rich water from deep water towards the ocean surface. It replaces the warmer and usually nutrient-depleted sur ...
of nutrients from the
sea floor, often following massive storms, provide nutrients and trigger bloom events as well. Increasing coastal developments and aquaculture also contribute to the occurrence of coastal HABs.
Effects of HABs can worsen locally due to wind driven
Langmuir circulation and their
biological effects.
Description and identification

HABs from
cyanobacteria
Cyanobacteria ( ) are a group of autotrophic gram-negative bacteria that can obtain biological energy via oxygenic photosynthesis. The name "cyanobacteria" () refers to their bluish green (cyan) color, which forms the basis of cyanobacteri ...
(blue-green algae) can appear as a foam, scum, or mat on or just below the surface of water and can take on various colors depending on their pigments.
[ Cyanobacteria blooms in freshwater lakes or rivers may appear bright green, often with surface streaks that look like floating paint.][ Cyanobacterial blooms are a global problem.
Most blooms occur in warm waters with excessive nutrients.] The harmful effects from such blooms are due to the toxins they produce or from using up oxygen in the water which can lead to fish die-offs.["What you need to know about toxic algae blooms"](_blank)
''USA Today'', August 7, 2015 Not all algal blooms produce toxins, however, with some only discoloring water, producing a smelly odor, or adding a bad taste to the water. Unfortunately, it is not possible to tell if a bloom is harmful from just appearances, since sampling and microscopic examination is required.[ In many cases microscopy is not sufficient to tell the difference between toxic and non-toxic populations. In these cases, tools can be employed to measure the toxin level or to determine if the toxin-production genes are present.
]
Terminology
In a narrow definition, harmful algal blooms are only those blooms that release toxins that affect other species. On the other hand, any algal bloom can cause dead zones due to low oxygen levels, and could therefore be called "harmful" in that sense. The usage of the term "harmful algal blooms" in the media and scientific literature is varied. In a broader definition, all "organisms and events are considered to be HABs if they negatively impact human health or socioeconomic interests or are detrimental to aquatic systems". A harmful algal bloom is "a societal concept rather than a scientific definition".
A similarly broad definition of HABs was adopted by the US Environmental Protection Agency in 2008 who stated that HABs include "potentially toxic (auxotrophic, heterotrophic) species and high-biomass producers that can cause hypoxia and anoxia and indiscriminate mortalities of marine life after reaching dense concentrations, whether or not toxins are produced".
Red tide
Harmful algal bloom in coastal areas are also often referred to as "red tides". The term "red tide" is derived from blooms of any of several species of dinoflagellate
The Dinoflagellates (), also called Dinophytes, are a monophyletic group of single-celled eukaryotes constituting the phylum Dinoflagellata and are usually considered protists. Dinoflagellates are mostly marine plankton, but they are also commo ...
, such as '' Karenia brevis''. However, the term is misleading since algal blooms can widely vary in color, and growth of algae is unrelated to the tide
Tides are the rise and fall of sea levels caused by the combined effects of the gravitational forces exerted by the Moon (and to a much lesser extent, the Sun) and are also caused by the Earth and Moon orbiting one another.
Tide tables ...
s. Not all red tides are produced by dinoflagellates. The mixotrophic ciliate '' Mesodinium rubrum'' produces non-toxic blooms coloured deep red by chloroplasts it obtains from the algae it eats.
As a technical term, it is being replaced in favor of more precise terminology, including the generic term "harmful algal bloom" for harmful species, and " algal bloom" for benign species.
Types
There are three main types of phytoplankton which can form into harmful algal blooms: cyanobacteria
Cyanobacteria ( ) are a group of autotrophic gram-negative bacteria that can obtain biological energy via oxygenic photosynthesis. The name "cyanobacteria" () refers to their bluish green (cyan) color, which forms the basis of cyanobacteri ...
, dinoflagellates, and diatoms. All three are made up of microscopic floating organisms which, like plants, can create their own food from sunlight by means of photosynthesis
Photosynthesis ( ) is a system of biological processes by which photosynthetic organisms, such as most plants, algae, and cyanobacteria, convert light energy, typically from sunlight, into the chemical energy necessary to fuel their metabo ...
. That ability makes the majority of them an essential part of the food web for small fish and other organisms.
Cyanobacteria
Harmful algal blooms in freshwater lakes and rivers, or at estuaries
An estuary is a partially enclosed coastal body of brackish water with one or more rivers or streams flowing into it, and with a free connection to the open sea. Estuaries form a transition zone between river environments and maritime environm ...
, where rivers flow into the ocean, are caused by cyanobacteria, which are commonly referred to as "blue-green algae", but are in fact prokaryotic bacteria, as opposed to algae which are eukaryote
The eukaryotes ( ) constitute the Domain (biology), domain of Eukaryota or Eukarya, organisms whose Cell (biology), cells have a membrane-bound cell nucleus, nucleus. All animals, plants, Fungus, fungi, seaweeds, and many unicellular organisms ...
s. Some cyanobacteria, including the widespread genus ''Microsystis'', can produce hazardous cyanotoxins such as microcystins, which are hepatotoxins
Hepatotoxicity (from ''hepatic toxicity'') implies chemical-driven liver damage. Drug-induced liver injury (DILI) is a cause of acute and chronic liver disease caused specifically by medications and the most common reason for a drug to be withdr ...
that harm the liver of mammals. Other types of cyanobacteria can also produce hepatotoxins, as well as neurotoxins, cytotoxins, and endotoxins. Water purification plants may be unable to remove these toxins, leading to increasingly common localised advisories against drinking tap water, as happened in Toledo, Ohio in August 2014.[
In August 2021, there were 47 lakes confirmed to have algal blooms in New York State alone. In September 2021, Spokane County's Environmental Programs issued a HAB alert for Newman Lake following tests showing potentially harmful toxicity levels for cyanobacteria, while in the same month record-high levels of microcystins were reported leading to an extended 'Do Not Drink' advisory for 280 households at Clear Lake, California's second-largest freshwater lake. Water conditions in Florida, meanwhile, continue to deteriorate under increasing nutrient inflows, causing severe HAB events in both freshwater and marine areas.
HABs also cause harm by blocking the sunlight used by plants and algae to photosynthesise, or by depleting the dissolved oxygen needed by fish and other aquatic animals, which can lead to fish die-offs.][ When such oxygen-depleted water covers a large area for an extended period of time, it can become hypoxic or even anoxic; these areas are commonly called dead zones. These dead zones can be the result of numerous different factors ranging from natural phenomenon to deliberate human intervention, and are not just limited to large bodies of fresh water as found in the great lakes, but are also prone to bodies of salt water as well.
]
Dual-stage life systems of algal species
Many of the species that form harmful algae blooms will undergo a dual-stage life system. These species will alternate between a benthic
The benthic zone is the ecological region at the lowest level of a body of water such as an ocean, lake, or stream, including the sediment surface and some sub-surface layers. The name comes from the Ancient Greek word (), meaning "the depths". ...
resting stage and a pelagic
The pelagic zone consists of the water column of the open ocean and can be further divided into regions by depth. The word ''pelagic'' is derived . The pelagic zone can be thought of as an imaginary cylinder or water column between the sur ...
vegetative state. The benthic resting stage corresponds to when these species are resting near the ocean floor. In this stage, the species cells are waiting for optimal conditions so that they can move towards the surface. These species will then transition from the benthic resting stage into the pelagic vegetative state - where they are more active and found near the water body surface. In the pelagic vegetative state, these cells are able to grow and multiply. It is within the pelagic vegetative state that a bloom is able to occur - as the cells rapidly reproduce and take over the upper regions of the body of water. The transition between these two life stages can have multiple effects on the algae bloom (such as rapid termination of the HAB as cells convert from the pelagic state to the benthic state). Many of the algal species that undergo this dual-stage life cycle are capable of rapid vertical migration. This migration is required for the movement from the benthic area of bodies of water to the pelagic zone. These species require immense amounts of energy as they pass through the various thermoclines, haloclines, and pycnoclines that are associated with the bodies of water in which these cells exist.
Diatoms and dinoflagellates (in marine coastal areas)
The other types of algae are diatom
A diatom (Neo-Latin ''diatoma'') is any member of a large group comprising several Genus, genera of algae, specifically microalgae, found in the oceans, waterways and soils of the world. Living diatoms make up a significant portion of Earth's B ...
s and dinoflagellate
The Dinoflagellates (), also called Dinophytes, are a monophyletic group of single-celled eukaryotes constituting the phylum Dinoflagellata and are usually considered protists. Dinoflagellates are mostly marine plankton, but they are also commo ...
s, found primarily in marine environments, such as ocean coastlines or bays, where they can also form algal blooms. Coastal HABs are a natural phenomenon, although in many instances, particularly when they form close to coastlines or in estuaries, it has been shown that they are exacerbated by human-induced eutrophication
Eutrophication is a general term describing a process in which nutrients accumulate in a body of water, resulting in an increased growth of organisms that may deplete the oxygen in the water; ie. the process of too many plants growing on the s ...
and / or climate change. They can occur when warmer water, lower salinity, and nutrients reach certain levels, which then stimulates their growth. Most HAB algae are dinoflagellates. They are visible in water at a concentration of 1,000 algae cells/ml, while in dense blooms they can measure over 200,000/ml.
Diatoms produce domoic acid
Domoic acid (DA) is a kainic acid-type neurotoxin that causes amnesic shellfish poisoning (ASP). It is produced by algae and accumulates in shellfish, sardines, and anchovies. When sea lions, otters, cetaceans, humans, and other predators eat cont ...
, another neurotoxin, which can cause seizures in higher vertebrates and birds as it concentrates up the food chain. Domoic acid readily accumulates in the bodies of shellfish, sardines, and anchovies, which if then eaten by sea lions, otters
Otters are carnivorous mammals in the Rank (zoology), subfamily Lutrinae. The 13 extant otter species are all semiaquatic, aquatic animal, aquatic, or Marine ecology, marine. Lutrinae is a branch of the Mustelidae Family (biology), family, whi ...
, cetaceans
Cetacea (; , ) is an infraorder of aquatic mammals belonging to the order Artiodactyla that includes whales, dolphins and porpoises. Key characteristics are their fully aquatic lifestyle, streamlined body shape, often large size and exclusively c ...
, birds or people, can affect the nervous system causing serious injury or death. In the summer of 2015, the state governments closed important shellfish fisheries in Washington, Oregon
Oregon ( , ) is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is a part of the Western U.S., with the Columbia River delineating much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while t ...
, and California
California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...
because of high concentrations of domoic acid in shellfish.
In the marine environment, single-celled, microscopic, plant-like organisms naturally occur in the well-lit surface layer of any body of water. These organisms, referred to as phytoplankton or microalgae, form the base of the food web upon which nearly all other marine organisms depend. Of the 5000+ species of marine phytoplankton that exist worldwide, about 2% are known to be harmful or toxic. Blooms of harmful algae can have large and varied impacts on marine ecosystems, depending on the species involved, the environment where they are found, and the mechanism by which they exert negative effects.
List of common HAB genera
* '' Gonyaulax''
* '' Karenia''
* '' Gymnodinium''
* '' Dinophysis''
* '' Noctiluca''
* '' Chattonella''
* '' Ceratium''
* '' Amoebophrya''
* '' Alexandrium''
* '' Cochlodinium''
Causes
It is sometimes unclear what causes specific HABs as their occurrence in some locations appears to be entirely natural, while in others they appear to be a result of human activities. Furthermore, there are many different species of algae that can form HABs, each with different environmental requirements for optimal growth. The frequency and severity of HABs in some parts of the world have been linked to increased nutrient loading from human activities. In other areas, HABs are a predictable seasonal occurrence resulting from coastal upwelling, a natural result of the movement of certain ocean currents.
The growth of marine phytoplankton (both non-toxic and toxic) is generally limited by the availability of nitrates and phosphates, which can be abundant in coastal upwelling zones as well as in agricultural run-off. The type of nitrates and phosphates available in the system are also a factor, since phytoplankton can grow at different rates depending on the relative abundance of these substances (e.g. ammonia
Ammonia is an inorganic chemical compound of nitrogen and hydrogen with the chemical formula, formula . A Binary compounds of hydrogen, stable binary hydride and the simplest pnictogen hydride, ammonia is a colourless gas with a distinctive pu ...
, urea
Urea, also called carbamide (because it is a diamide of carbonic acid), is an organic compound with chemical formula . This amide has two Amine, amino groups (–) joined by a carbonyl functional group (–C(=O)–). It is thus the simplest am ...
, nitrate ion).[
A variety of other nutrient sources can also play an important role in affecting algal bloom formation, including iron, silica or carbon. Coastal ]water pollution
Water pollution (or aquatic pollution) is the contamination of Body of water, water bodies, with a negative impact on their uses. It is usually a result of human activities. Water bodies include lakes, rivers, oceans, aquifers, reservoirs and ...
produced by humans (including iron fertilization) and systematic increase in sea water temperature have also been suggested as possible contributing factors in HABs.
Among the causes of algal blooms are:
* Excess nutrients—phosphorus
Phosphorus is a chemical element; it has Chemical symbol, symbol P and atomic number 15. All elemental forms of phosphorus are highly Reactivity (chemistry), reactive and are therefore never found in nature. They can nevertheless be prepared ar ...
and nitrates—from fertilizers or sewage
Sewage (or domestic sewage, domestic wastewater, municipal wastewater) is a type of wastewater that is produced by a community of people. It is typically transported through a sewerage, sewer system. Sewage consists of wastewater discharged fro ...
that are discharged to water bodies (also called nutrient pollution
Nutrient pollution is a form of water pollution caused by too many Nutrient, nutrients entering the water. It is a primary cause of eutrophication of surface waters (lakes, rivers and Coast, coastal waters), in which excess nutrients, usually ni ...
)
* climate change
Present-day climate change includes both global warming—the ongoing increase in Global surface temperature, global average temperature—and its wider effects on Earth's climate system. Climate variability and change, Climate change in ...
* thermal pollution
Thermal pollution, sometimes called "thermal enrichment", is the degradation of water quality by any process that changes ambient water temperature. Thermal pollution is the rise or drop in the temperature of a natural body of water caused by h ...
from power plants and factories
* low water levels in inland waterways and lakes, which reduces water flow and increases water temperatures["Neurotoxic algae bloom that shuts down Utah Lake can affect brain, liver"](_blank)
''KUTV'', July 15, 2016["Russian River to be closely monitored this summer to guard against harmful algae blooms"](_blank)
''Press Democrat'' June 23, 2016
* invasive filter feeders—especially Zebra mussels, ''Dreissena polymorpha''—which preferentially eat non-toxic algae, competitors to harmful algae
Nutrients
Nutrients enter freshwater or marine environments as surface runoff
Surface runoff (also known as overland flow or terrestrial runoff) is the unconfined flow of water over the ground surface, in contrast to ''channel runoff'' (or ''stream flow''). It occurs when excess rainwater, stormwater, meltwater, or other ...
from agricultural pollution and urban runoff
Urban runoff is surface runoff of rainwater, landscape irrigation, and car washing created by urbanization. Impervious surfaces (roads, parking lots and sidewalks) are constructed during land development. During rain, storms, and other Precipitati ...
from fertilized lawns, golf courses and other landscaped properties; and from sewage treatment plants
Sewage treatment is a type of wastewater treatment which aims to remove contaminants from sewage to produce an effluent that is suitable to discharge to the surrounding environment or an intended reuse application, thereby preventing water ...
that lack nutrient control systems. Additional nutrients are introduced from atmospheric pollution.[Miller, G. Tyler Jr., ''Environmental Science'', Thomas Learning (2003) pp. 355357] Coastal areas worldwide, especially wetlands and estuaries, coral reefs and swamps, are prone to being overloaded with those nutrients. Most of the large cities along the Mediterranean Sea
The Mediterranean Sea ( ) is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the east by the Levant in West Asia, on the north by Anatolia in West Asia and Southern Eur ...
, for example, discharge all of their sewage into the sea untreated. The same is true for most coastal developing countries, while in parts of the developing world, as much as 70% of wastewater from large cities may re-enter water systems without being treated.
Residual nutrients in treated wastewater can also accumulate in downstream source water areas and fuel eutrophication, which leads progressively to a cyanobacteria-dominated system characterized by seasonal HABs. As more wastewater treatment infrastructure is built, more treated wastewater is returned to the natural water system, leading to a significant increase in these residual nutrients.
Residual nutrients combine with nutrients from other sources to increase the sediment nutrient stockpile that is the driving force behind phase shifts to entrenched eutrophic conditions.
This contributes to the ongoing degradation of dams, lakes, rivers, and reservoirs - source water areas that are starting to become known as ecological infrastructure, placing increasing pressure on wastewater treatment works and water purification plants. Such pressures, in turn, intensify seasonal HABs.
Climate change
Climate change
Present-day climate change includes both global warming—the ongoing increase in Global surface temperature, global average temperature—and its wider effects on Earth's climate system. Climate variability and change, Climate change in ...
contributes to warmer waters which makes conditions more favorable for algae growth in more regions and farther north. In general, still, warm, shallow water, combined with high-nutrient conditions in lakes or rivers, increases the risk of harmful algal blooms. Warming of summer surface temperatures of lakes, which rose by 0.34 °C decade per decade between 1985 and 2009 due to global warming, also will likely increase algal blooming by 20% over the next century.
Although the drivers of harmful algal blooms are poorly understood, they do appear to have increased in range expansion and frequency in coastal areas since the 1980s.[IPCC, 2019]
Summary for Policymakers
In
IPCC Special Report on the Ocean and Cryosphere in a Changing Climate
.-O. Pörtner, D.C. Roberts, V. Masson-Delmotte, P. Zhai, M. Tignor, E. Poloczanska, K. Mintenbeck, A. Alegría, M. Nicolai, A. Okem, J. Petzold, B. Rama, N.M. Weyer (eds.) Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK and New York, NY, USA. . The is the result of human induced factors such as increased nutrient inputs (nutrient pollution
Nutrient pollution is a form of water pollution caused by too many Nutrient, nutrients entering the water. It is a primary cause of eutrophication of surface waters (lakes, rivers and Coast, coastal waters), in which excess nutrients, usually ni ...
) and climate change (in particular the warming of water temperatures). The parameters that affect the formation of HABs are ocean warming, marine heatwaves, oxygen loss, eutrophication and water pollution
Water pollution (or aquatic pollution) is the contamination of Body of water, water bodies, with a negative impact on their uses. It is usually a result of human activities. Water bodies include lakes, rivers, oceans, aquifers, reservoirs and ...
.
Causes or contributing factors of coastal HABs
HABs contain dense concentrations of organisms and appear as discolored water, often reddish-brown in color. It is a natural phenomenon, but the exact cause or combination of factors that result in a HAB event are not necessarily known. However, three key natural factors are thought to play an important role in a bloom - salinity, temperature, and wind. HABs cause economic harm, so outbreaks are carefully monitored. For example, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission provides an up-to-date status report on HABs in Florida. The Texas Parks and Wildlife Department also provides a status report. While no particular cause of HABs has been found, many different factors can contribute to their presence. These factors can include water pollution
Water pollution (or aquatic pollution) is the contamination of Body of water, water bodies, with a negative impact on their uses. It is usually a result of human activities. Water bodies include lakes, rivers, oceans, aquifers, reservoirs and ...
, which originates from sources such as human sewage
Sewage (or domestic sewage, domestic wastewater, municipal wastewater) is a type of wastewater that is produced by a community of people. It is typically transported through a sewerage, sewer system. Sewage consists of wastewater discharged fro ...
and agricultural runoff.
The occurrence of HABs in some locations appears to be entirely natural (algal blooms are a seasonal occurrence resulting from coastal upwelling, a natural result of the movement of certain ocean currents) while in others they appear to be a result of increased nutrient pollution
Nutrient pollution is a form of water pollution caused by too many Nutrient, nutrients entering the water. It is a primary cause of eutrophication of surface waters (lakes, rivers and Coast, coastal waters), in which excess nutrients, usually ni ...
from human activities. The growth of marine phytoplankton is generally limited by the availability of nitrates and phosphates, which can be abundant in agricultural run-off as well as coastal upwelling zones. Other factors such as iron-rich dust influx from large desert areas such as the Sahara Desert are thought to play a major role in causing HAB events. Some algal blooms on the Pacific Coast have also been linked to occurrences of large-scale climatic oscillations such as El Niño
EL, El or el may refer to:
Arts and entertainment Fictional entities
* El, a character from the manga series ''Shugo Chara!'' by Peach-Pit
* Eleven (''Stranger Things'') (El), a fictional character in the TV series ''Stranger Things''
* El, fami ...
events.
Other causes
Other factors such as iron-rich dust influx from large desert areas such as the Sahara
The Sahara (, ) is a desert spanning across North Africa. With an area of , it is the largest hot desert in the world and the list of deserts by area, third-largest desert overall, smaller only than the deserts of Antarctica and the northern Ar ...
are thought to play a role in causing HABs. Some algal blooms on the Pacific coast have also been linked to natural occurrences of large-scale climatic oscillations such as El Niño
EL, El or el may refer to:
Arts and entertainment Fictional entities
* El, a character from the manga series ''Shugo Chara!'' by Peach-Pit
* Eleven (''Stranger Things'') (El), a fictional character in the TV series ''Stranger Things''
* El, fami ...
events. HABs are also linked to heavy rainfall. Although HABs in the Gulf of Mexico were witnessed in the early 1500s by explorer Cabeza de Vaca, it is unclear what initiates these blooms and how large a role nanthropogenic
Anthropogenic ("human" + "generating") is an adjective that may refer to:
* Anthropogeny, the study of the origins of humanity
Anthropogenic may also refer to things that have been generated by humans, as follows:
* Human impact on the enviro ...
and natural factors play in their development.
Number and sizes
The number of reported harmful algal blooms (cyanobacterial) has been increasing throughout the world. It is unclear whether the apparent increase in frequency and severity of HABs in various parts of the world is in fact a real increase or is due to increased observation effort and advances in species identification technology.
In 2008, the U.S. government prepared a report on the problem, "Harmful Algal Bloom Management and Response: Assessment and Plan".["Harmful Algal Bloom Management and Response: Assessment and Plan"](_blank)
, Office of Science and Technology Policy, Sept. 2008 The report recognized the seriousness of the problem:
Researchers have reported the growth of HABs in Europe, Africa and Australia. Those have included blooms on some of the African Great Lakes
The African Great Lakes (; ) are a series of lakes constituting the part of the Rift Valley lakes in and around the East African Rift. The series includes Lake Victoria, the second-largest freshwater lake in the world by area; Lake Tangan ...
, such as Lake Victoria
Lake Victoria is one of the African Great Lakes. With a surface area of approximately , Lake Victoria is Africa's largest lake by area, the world's largest tropics, tropical lake, and the world's second-largest fresh water lake by surface are ...
, the second largest freshwater lake in the world. India
India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...
has been reporting an increase in the number of blooms each year. In 1977 Hong Kong
Hong Kong)., Legally Hong Kong, China in international treaties and organizations. is a special administrative region of China. With 7.5 million residents in a territory, Hong Kong is the fourth most densely populated region in the wor ...
reported its first coastal HAB. By 1987 they were getting an average of 35 per year. Additionally, there have been reports of harmful algal blooms throughout popular Canadian lakes such as Beaver Lake and Quamichan Lake. These blooms were responsible for the deaths of a few animals and led to swimming advisories.
Global warming and pollution is causing algal blooms to form in places previously considered "impossible" or rare for them to exist, such as under the ice sheets in the Arctic
The Arctic (; . ) is the polar regions of Earth, polar region of Earth that surrounds the North Pole, lying within the Arctic Circle. The Arctic region, from the IERS Reference Meridian travelling east, consists of parts of northern Norway ( ...
, in Antarctica
Antarctica () is Earth's southernmost and least-populated continent. Situated almost entirely south of the Antarctic Circle and surrounded by the Southern Ocean (also known as the Antarctic Ocean), it contains the geographic South Pole. ...
, the Himalayan Mountains, the Rocky Mountains
The Rocky Mountains, also known as the Rockies, are a major mountain range and the largest mountain system in North America. The Rocky Mountains stretch in great-circle distance, straight-line distance from the northernmost part of Western Can ...
, and in the Sierra Nevada Mountains.
In the U.S., every coastal state has had harmful algal blooms over the last decade and new species have emerged in new locations that were not previously known to have caused problems. Inland, major rivers have seen an increase in their size and frequency. In 2015 the Ohio River
The Ohio River () is a river in the United States. It is located at the boundary of the Midwestern and Southern United States, flowing in a southwesterly direction from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, to its river mouth, mouth on the Mississippi Riv ...
had a bloom which stretched an "unprecedented" into adjoining states and tested positive for toxins, which created drinking water and recreation problems. A portion of Utah's Jordan River was closed due to toxic algal bloom in 2016.
Off the west coast of South Africa
South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...
, HABs caused by '' Alexandrium catanella'' occur every spring. These blooms of organisms cause severe disruptions in fisheries of these waters as the toxins in the phytoplankton cause filter-feeding shellfish in affected waters to become poisonous for human consumption.
Harmful effects
As algal blooms grow, they deplete the oxygen in the water and block sunlight from reaching fish and plants. Such blooms can last from a few days to many months. With less light, plants beneath the bloom can die and fish can starve. Furthermore, the dense population of a bloom reduces oxygen saturation during the night by respiration. And when the algae eventually die off, the microbes which decompose the dead algae use up even more oxygen, which in turn causes more fish to die or leave the area. When oxygen continues to be depleted by blooms it can lead to hypoxic dead zones, where neither fish nor plants are able to survive. These dead zones in the case of the Chesapeake Bay, where they are a normal occurrence, are also suspected of being a major source of methane
Methane ( , ) is a chemical compound with the chemical formula (one carbon atom bonded to four hydrogen atoms). It is a group-14 hydride, the simplest alkane, and the main constituent of natural gas. The abundance of methane on Earth makes ...
.
Scientists have found that HABs were a prominent feature of previous mass extinction event
An extinction event (also known as a mass extinction or biotic crisis) is a widespread and rapid decrease in the biodiversity on Earth. Such an event is identified by a sharp fall in the diversity and abundance of multicellular organisms. It occ ...
s, including the End-Permian Extinction.
Human health
Tests have shown some toxins near blooms can be in the air and thereby be inhaled, which could affect health. This occurs due to the aerosolization of the toxins which are then transported by the wind. Not all algal blooms release harmful toxins into the atmosphere, because it is dependent on both the species and environmental conditions. Some species of microalgae/bacteria release toxins through cell lysis induced by physical stresses such as wave action. Other species release toxins through lysis induced by cellular processes, viral stresses, or chemical stresses in the water column. The toxins are mainly aerosolized into spray aerosols caused by wave action. The surface movement of water creates bubbles in the water, and when these bubbles reach the surface they pop. When the bubbles pop they eject water droplets which contain lysed cell material from harmful algal blooms (HAB's). Once ejected the aerosolized toxins are transported by the wind. A 2017 study found that sea spray aerosol can be transported up to 1000 km by the wind.
It is important to stay informed of local policies and response measures that are in place for HAB's even if you do not live directly on the coast because of the distances that these toxins can be transported.
Food
Eating fish or shellfish from lakes with a bloom nearby is not recommended. Potent toxins are accumulated in shellfish that feed on the algae. If the shellfish are consumed, various types of poisoning may result. These include amnesic shellfish poisoning (ASP), diarrhetic shellfish poisoning, neurotoxic shellfish poisoning, and paralytic shellfish poisoning. A 2002 study has shown that algal toxins may be the cause for as many as 60,000 intoxication cases in the world each year.
In 1987 a new illness emerged: amnesic shellfish poisoning (ASP). People who had eaten mussel
Mussel () is the common name used for members of several families of bivalve molluscs, from saltwater and Freshwater bivalve, freshwater habitats. These groups have in common a shell whose outline is elongated and asymmetrical compared with other ...
s from Prince Edward Island
Prince Edward Island is an island Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. While it is the smallest province by land area and population, it is the most densely populated. The island has several nicknames: "Garden of the Gulf", ...
were found to have ASP. The illness was caused by domoic acid
Domoic acid (DA) is a kainic acid-type neurotoxin that causes amnesic shellfish poisoning (ASP). It is produced by algae and accumulates in shellfish, sardines, and anchovies. When sea lions, otters, cetaceans, humans, and other predators eat cont ...
, produced by a diatom found in the area where the mussels were cultivated. A 2013 study found that toxic paralytic shellfish poisoning in the Philippines
The Philippines, officially the Republic of the Philippines, is an Archipelagic state, archipelagic country in Southeast Asia. Located in the western Pacific Ocean, it consists of List of islands of the Philippines, 7,641 islands, with a tot ...
during HABs has caused at least 120 deaths over a few decades. After a 2014 HAB incident in Monterey Bay
Monterey Bay is a bay of the Pacific Ocean located on the coast of the U.S. state of California, south of the San Francisco Bay Area. San Francisco itself is further north along the coast, by about 75 miles (120 km), accessible via California S ...
, California, health officials warned people not to eat certain parts of anchovy, sardines, or crab caught in the bay. In 2015 most shellfish fisheries in Washington, Oregon and California were shut down because of high concentrations of toxic domoic acid in shellfish. People have been warned that inhaling vapors from waves or wind during a HAB event may cause asthma attacks or lead to other respiratory ailments.
In 2018 agricultural officials in Utah
Utah is a landlocked state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It is one of the Four Corners states, sharing a border with Arizona, Colorado, and New Mexico. It also borders Wyoming to the northea ...
worried that even crops could become contaminated if irrigated with toxic water, although they admit that they can't measure contamination accurately because of so many variables in farming. They issued warnings to residents, however, out of caution.
Drinking water
Persons are generally warned not to enter or drink water from algal blooms, or let their pets swim in the water since many pets have died from algal blooms. In at least one case, people began getting sick before warnings were issued. There is no treatment available for animals, including livestock cattle, if they drink from algal blooms where such toxins are present. Pets are advised to be kept away from algal blooms to avoid contact.
In some locations visitors have been warned not to even touch the water. Boaters have been told that toxins in the water can be inhaled from the spray from wind or waves. Ocean beaches, lakes and rivers have been closed due to algal blooms.["Utah County portion of Jordan River closed due to toxic algal bloom"](_blank)
, ''Daily Herald'', July 21, 2016 After a dog died in 2015 from swimming in a bloom in California's Russian River, officials likewise posted warnings for parts of the river. Boiling the water at home before drinking does not remove the toxins.
In August 2014 the city of Toledo, Ohio
Toledo ( ) is a city in Lucas County, Ohio, United States, and its county seat. It is located at the western end of Lake Erie along the Maumee River. Toledo is the List of cities in Ohio, fourth-most populous city in Ohio and List of United Sta ...
, advised its 500,000 residents to not drink tap water as the high toxin level from an algal bloom in western Lake Erie
Lake Erie ( ) is the fourth-largest lake by surface area of the five Great Lakes in North America and the eleventh-largest globally. It is the southernmost, shallowest, and smallest by volume of the Great Lakes and also has the shortest avera ...
had affected their water treatment plant's ability to treat the water to a safe level.["Toxic Algae Bloom Leaves 500,000 Without Drinking Water in Ohio"](_blank)
''Ecowatch'', August 3, 2014 The emergency required using bottled water for all normal uses except showering, which seriously affected public services and commercial businesses. The bloom returned in 2015 and was forecast again for the summer of 2016.
In 2004, a bloom in Kisumu Bay, which is the drinking water source for 500,000 people in Kisumu
Kisumu ( ) is the third-largest city in Kenya located in the Lake Victoria area in the former Nyanza Province. It is the second-largest city after Kampala in the Lake Victoria Basin. The city has a population of slightly over 600,000. The ...
, Kenya
Kenya, officially the Republic of Kenya, is a country located in East Africa. With an estimated population of more than 52.4 million as of mid-2024, Kenya is the 27th-most-populous country in the world and the 7th most populous in Africa. ...
, suffered from similar water contamination.["World Stands By As Algae and Dead Zones Ruin Water"](_blank)
''Circle of Blue'', Sept. 25, 2014 In China, water was cut off to residents in 2007 due to an algal bloom in its third largest lake, which forced 2 million people to use bottled water. A smaller water shut-down in China affected 15,000 residents two years later at a different location. Australia in 2016 also had to cut off water to farmers.
Alan Steinman of Grand Valley State University has explained that among the major causes for the algal blooms in general, and Lake Erie specifically, is because blue-green algae thrive with high nutrients, along with warm and calm water. Lake Erie is more prone to blooms because it has a high nutrient level and is shallow, which causes it to warm up more quickly during the summer.
Symptoms from drinking toxic water can show up within a few hours after exposure. They can include nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea, or trigger headaches and gastrointestinal problems. Although rare, liver toxicity can cause death. Those symptoms can then lead to dehydration, another major concern. In high concentrations, the toxins in the algal waters when simply touched can cause skin rashes, irritate the eyes, nose, mouth or throat. Those with suspected symptoms are told to call a doctor if symptoms persist or they can't hold down fluids after 24 hours.
In studies at the population level bloom coverage has been significantly related to the risk of non-alcoholic liver disease
Liver disease, or hepatic disease, is any of many diseases of the liver. If long-lasting it is termed chronic liver disease. Although the diseases differ in detail, liver diseases often have features in common.
Liver diseases
File:Ground gla ...
death.
Neurological disorders
Toxic algae blooms are thought to play a role in humans developing degenerative neurological disorders such as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis
Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), also known as motor neuron disease (MND) or—in the United States—Lou Gehrig's disease (LGD), is a rare, Terminal illness, terminal neurodegenerative disease, neurodegenerative disorder that results i ...
and Parkinson's disease
Parkinson's disease (PD), or simply Parkinson's, is a neurodegenerative disease primarily of the central nervous system, affecting both motor system, motor and non-motor systems. Symptoms typically develop gradually and non-motor issues become ...
.
Less than one percent of algal blooms produce hazardous toxins, such as microcystins. Although blue-green or other algae do not usually pose a direct threat to health, the toxins (poisons) which they produce are considered dangerous to humans, land animals, sea mammals, birds and fish when the toxins are ingested. The toxins are neurotoxins which destroy nerve tissue which can affect the nervous system, brain, and liver, and can lead to death.
Effects on humans from harmful algal blooms in marine environments
Humans are affected by the HAB species by ingesting improperly harvested shellfish, breathing in aerosolized brevetoxins (i.e. PbTx or ''Ptychodiscus'' toxins) and in some cases skin contact. The brevetoxins bind to voltage-gated sodium channels, important structures of cell membranes. Binding results in persistent activation of nerve cells, which interferes with neural transmission leading to health problems. These toxins are created within the unicellular organism, or as a metabolic product. The two major types of brevetoxin compounds have similar but distinct backbone structures. PbTx-2 is the primary intracellular brevetoxin produced by ''K. brevis'' blooms. However, over time, the PbTx-2 brevetoxin can be converted to PbTx-3 through metabolic changes. Researchers found that PbTx-2 has been the primary intracellular brevetoxin that converts over time into PbTx-3.
In the U.S., the seafood consumed by humans is tested regularly for toxins by the USDA to ensure safe consumption. Such testing is common in other nations. However, improper harvesting of shellfish can cause paralytic shellfish poisoning and neurotoxic shellfish poisoning in humans. Some symptoms include drowsiness, diarrhea, nausea, loss of motor control, tingling, numbing or aching of extremities, incoherence, and respiratory paralysis. Reports of skin irritation after swimming in the ocean during a HAB are common.
When the HAB cells rupture, they release extracellular brevetoxins into the environment. Some of those stay in the ocean, while other particles get aerosolized. During onshore winds, brevetoxins can become aerosolized by bubble-mediated transport, causing respiratory irritation, bronchoconstriction, coughing, and wheezing, among other symptoms.[Backer et al., Lorraine C., Laura E. Flemming, Alan Rowan. "Recreational exposure to aerosolized brevetoxins during Florida red tide events." Harmful Algae 2 (2003): 19–28. 6 March 2018.]
It is recommended to avoid contact with wind-blown aerosolized toxin. Some individuals report a decrease in respiratory function after only 1 hour of exposure to a ''K. brevis'' red-tide beach and these symptoms may last for days. People with severe or persistent respiratory conditions (such as chronic lung disease or asthma) may experience stronger adverse reactions.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA ) is an American scientific and regulatory agency charged with Weather forecasting, forecasting weather, monitoring oceanic and atmospheric conditions, Hydrography, charting the seas, ...
's National Ocean Service provides a public conditions report identifying possible respiratory irritation impacts in areas affected by HABs.
Economic impact
Recreation and tourism
The hazards which accompany harmful algal blooms have hindered visitors' enjoyment of beaches and lakes in places in the U.S. such as Florida,["Summer Heat Could Worsen Algae Blooms In Florida Waters"](_blank)
''WLRN'', July 14, 2016 California,
''Los Angeles Times'', July 21, 2016 Vermont, and Utah. Persons hoping to enjoy their vacations or days off have been kept away to the detriment of local economies. Lakes and rivers in North Dakota
North Dakota ( ) is a U.S. state in the Upper Midwest, named after the indigenous Dakota people, Dakota and Sioux peoples. It is bordered by the Canadian provinces of Saskatchewan and Manitoba to the north and by the U.S. states of Minneso ...
, Minnesota
Minnesota ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Upper Midwestern region of the United States. It is bordered by the Canadian provinces of Manitoba and Ontario to the north and east and by the U.S. states of Wisconsin to the east, Iowa to the so ...
, Utah, California and Ohio have had signs posted warning about the potential of health risk.
Similar blooms have become more common in Europe, with France among the countries reporting them. In the summer of 2009, beaches in northern Brittany
Brittany ( ) is a peninsula, historical country and cultural area in the north-west of modern France, covering the western part of what was known as Armorica in Roman Gaul. It became an Kingdom of Brittany, independent kingdom and then a Duch ...
became covered by tonnes of potentially lethal rotting green algae. A horse being ridden along the beach collapsed and died from fumes given off by the rotting algae.
The economic damage resulting from lost business has become a serious concern. According to one report in 2016, the four main economic impacts from harmful algal blooms come from damage to human health, fisheries, tourism and recreation, and the cost of monitoring and management of area where blooms appear. EPA estimates that algal blooms impact 65 percent of the country's major estuaries, with an annual cost of $2.2 billion. In the U.S. there are an estimated 166 coastal dead zones. Because data collection has been more difficult and limited from sources outside the U.S., most of the estimates as of 2016 have been primarily for the U.S.["Algal bloom and its economic impact"](_blank)
''European Commission Joint Research Centre'', 2016
In port cities in the Shandong Province of eastern China, residents are no longer surprised when massive algal blooms arrive each year and inundate beaches. Prior to the Beijing Olympics in 2008, over 10,000 people worked to clear 20,000 tons of dead algae from beaches.["China: Yellow Sea turns green as Qingdao beaches are covered in algae"](_blank)
''International Business Times'', July 7, 2015 In 2013 another bloom in China, thought to be its largest ever, covered an area of 7,500 square miles, and was followed by another in 2015 which blanketed an even greater 13,500 square miles. The blooms in China are thought to be caused by pollution from untreated agricultural and industrial discharges into rivers leading to the ocean.
Fisheries industry
As early as 1976 a short-term, relatively small, dead zone off the coasts of New York and New Jersey
New Jersey is a U.S. state, state located in both the Mid-Atlantic States, Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern United States, Northeastern regions of the United States. Located at the geographic hub of the urban area, heavily urbanized Northeas ...
cost commercial and recreational fisheries over $500 million.["Oceanic Dead Zones Continue to Spread"](_blank)
''Scientific American'', August 15, 2008 In 1998 a HAB in Hong Kong killed over $10 million in high-value fish.[Brown, Lester; McGinn, Anne Platt. ''Vital Signs 1999–2000: The Environmental Trends that Are Shaping Our Future'', Routledge (1999 pp. 198–199)]
In 2009, the economic impact for the state of Washington's coastal counties dependent on its fishing industry was estimated to be $22 million. In 2016, the U.S. seafood industry expected future lost revenue could amount to $900 million annually.
NOAA has provided a few cost estimates for various blooms over the past few years: $10.3 million in 2011 due to a HAB at Texas oyster landings; $2.4 million lost income by tribal commerce from 2015 fishery closures in the pacific northwest; $40 million from Washington state's loss of tourism from the same fishery closure.
Along with damage to businesses, the toll from human sickness results in lost wages and damaged health. The costs of medical treatment, investigation by health agencies through water sampling and testing, and the posting of warning signs at effected locations is also costly.["Estimated Annual Economic Impacts from Harmful Algal Blooms (HABs) in the United States"](_blank)
Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, September 2000
The closures applied to areas where this algae bloom occurs has a big negative impact of the fishing industries, add to that the high fish mortality that follows, the increase in price due to the shortage of fish available and decrease in the demand for seafood due to the fear of contamination by toxins. This causes a big economic loss for the industry.
Economic costs are estimated to rise. In June 2015, for instance, the largest known toxic HAB forced the shutdown of the west coast shellfish industry, the first time that has ever happened. One Seattle NOAA expert commented, "This is unprecedented in terms of the extent and magnitude of this harmful algal bloom and the warm water conditions we're seeing offshore...."
''Oregon Live'', June 16, 2015 The bloom covered a range from Santa Barbara, California
Santa Barbara (, meaning ) is a coastal city in Santa Barbara County, California, of which it is also the county seat. Situated on a south-facing section of coastline, the longest such section on the West Coast of the United States excepting A ...
northward to Alaska
Alaska ( ) is a non-contiguous U.S. state on the northwest extremity of North America. Part of the Western United States region, it is one of the two non-contiguous U.S. states, alongside Hawaii. Alaska is also considered to be the north ...
.
The negative impact on fish can be even more severe when they are confined to pens, as they are in fish farms. In 2007 a fish farm in British Columbia
British Columbia is the westernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Situated in the Pacific Northwest between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains, the province has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that ...
lost 260 tons of salmon as a result of blooms, and in 2016 a farm in Chile lost 23 million salmon after an algal bloom.
Environmental impact
Dead zones
The presence of harmful algae bloom's can lead to hypoxia or anoxia in a body of water. The depletion of oxygen within a body of water can lead to the creation of a dead zone. Dead zones occur when a body of water has become unsuitable for organism survival in that location. HAB's cause dead zones by consuming oxygen in these bodies of water - leaving minimal oxygen available to other marine organisms. When the HAB's die, their bodies will sink to the bottom of the body of water - as the decaying of their bodies (through bacteria) is what causes the consumption of oxygen. Once oxygen levels get so low, the HAB's have placed the body of water in hypoxia - and these low oxygen levels will cause marine organisms to seek out better suited locations for their survival.
Blooms can harm the environment even without producing toxins by depleting oxygen from the water when growing and while decaying after they die. Blooms can also block sunlight to organisms living beneath it. A record-breaking number and size of blooms have formed in the Pacific coast, in Lake Erie, in the Chesapeake Bay and in the Gulf of Mexico, where a number of dead zones were created as a result.["Toxic Algal Blooms Aren't Just Florida's Problem. And They're On The Rise."](_blank)
''Huffington Post'', July 7, 2016 In the 1960s the number of dead zones worldwide was 49; the number rose to over 400 by 2008.
Among the largest dead zones were those in northern Europe's Baltic Sea
The Baltic Sea is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that is enclosed by the countries of Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Russia, Sweden, and the North European Plain, North and Central European Plain regions. It is the ...
and the Gulf of Mexico, which affects a $2.8 billion U.S. fish industry. Unfortunately, dead zones rarely recover and usually grow in size. One of the few dead zones to ever recover was in the Black Sea
The Black Sea is a marginal sea, marginal Mediterranean sea (oceanography), mediterranean sea lying between Europe and Asia, east of the Balkans, south of the East European Plain, west of the Caucasus, and north of Anatolia. It is bound ...
, which returned to normal fairly quickly after the collapse of the Soviet Union in the 1990s due to a resulting reduction in fertilizer use.
Fish die-offs
Massive fish die-offs have been caused by HABs.["Fish Kills due to Harmful Algal Blooms"](_blank)
''Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute'' In 2016, 23 million salmon which were being farmed in Chile died from a toxic algae bloom.
''EcoWatch'', March 10, 2016 To get rid of the dead fish, the ones fit for consumption were made into fishmeal and the rest were dumped 60 miles offshore to avoid risks to human health. The economic cost of that die-off is estimated to have been $800 million. Environmental expert Lester Brown has written that the farming of salmon and shrimp in offshore ponds concentrates waste, which contributes to eutrophication
Eutrophication is a general term describing a process in which nutrients accumulate in a body of water, resulting in an increased growth of organisms that may deplete the oxygen in the water; ie. the process of too many plants growing on the s ...
and the creation of dead zones.
Other countries have reported similar impacts, with cities such as Rio de Janeiro
Rio de Janeiro, or simply Rio, is the capital of the Rio de Janeiro (state), state of Rio de Janeiro. It is the List of cities in Brazil by population, second-most-populous city in Brazil (after São Paulo) and the Largest cities in the America ...
, Brazil seeing major fish die-offs from blooms becoming a common occurrence.["Brazil removes 50 tons of dead fish from Olympic waters"](_blank)
''Aljazeera'', April 21, 2015 In early 2015, Rio collected an estimated 50 tons of dead fish from the lagoon where water events in the 2016 Olympics were planned to take place.
The Monterey Bay
Monterey Bay is a bay of the Pacific Ocean located on the coast of the U.S. state of California, south of the San Francisco Bay Area. San Francisco itself is further north along the coast, by about 75 miles (120 km), accessible via California S ...
has suffered from harmful algal blooms, most recently in 2015: "Periodic blooms of toxin-producing '' Pseudo-nitzschia'' diatoms have been documented for over 25 years in Monterey Bay and elsewhere along the U.S. west coast. During large blooms, the toxin accumulates in shellfish and small fish such as anchovies and sardines that feed on algae, forcing the closure of some fisheries and poisoning marine mammals and birds that feed on contaminated fish." Similar fish die-offs from toxic algae or lack of oxygen have been seen in Russia, Colombia, Vietnam, China, Canada, Turkey, Indonesia, and France.
Land animal deaths
Land animals, including livestock and pets have been affected. Dogs have died from the toxins after swimming in algal blooms. Warnings have come from government agencies in the state of Ohio, which noted that many dogs and livestock deaths resulted from HAB exposure in the U.S. and other countries. They also noted in a 2003 report that during the previous 30 years, they have seen more frequent and longer-lasting harmful algal blooms."["Harmful Algal Blooms Can Be Deadly to Pets and Livestock"](_blank)
''Ohio Environmental Protection Agency'' In 50 countries and 27 states that year there were reports of human and animal illnesses linked to algal toxins. In Australia, the department of agriculture warned farmers that the toxins from a HAB had the "potential to kill large numbers of livestock very quickly."
Marine mammals have also been seriously harmed, as over 50 percent of unusual marine mammal deaths are caused by harmful algal blooms. In 1999, over 65 bottlenose dolphins died during a coastal HAB in Florida. In 2013 a HAB in southwest Florida killed a record number of Manatee
Manatees (, family (biology), family Trichechidae, genus ''Trichechus'') are large, fully aquatic, mostly herbivory, herbivorous marine mammals sometimes known as sea cows. There are three accepted living species of Trichechidae, representing t ...
. Whales have also died in large numbers. During the period from 2005 to 2014, Argentina reported an average 65 baby whales dying which experts have linked to algal blooms. A whale expert there expects the whale population to be reduced significantly. In 2003 off Cape Cod
Cape Cod is a peninsula extending into the Atlantic Ocean from the southeastern corner of Massachusetts, in the northeastern United States. Its historic, maritime character and ample beaches attract heavy tourism during the summer months. The ...
in the North Atlantic, at least 12 humpback whales died from toxic algae from a HAB. In 2015 Alaska and British Columbia reported many humpback whales had likely died from HAB toxins, with 30 having washed ashore in Alaska. "Our leading theory at this point is that the harmful algal bloom has contributed to the deaths," said a NOAA spokesperson.
Birds have died after eating dead fish contaminated with toxic algae. Rotting and decaying fish are eaten by birds such as pelicans, seagulls, cormorants, and possibly marine or land mammals, which then become poisoned. The nervous systems of dead birds were examined and had failed from the toxin's effect. On the Oregon and Washington coast, a thousand scoter
The scoters are stocky seaducks in the genus ''Melanitta''. The drakes are mostly black and have swollen bills, the females are brown. They breed in the far north of Europe, Asia, and North America, and bird migration, winter further south in te ...
s, or sea ducks, were also killed in 2009. "This is huge," said a university professor.["Foam from ocean algae bloom killing thousands of birds"](_blank)
''Oregon Live'', October 22, 2009 As dying or dead birds washed up on the shore, wildlife agencies went into "an emergency crisis mode."
It has even been suggested that harmful algal blooms are responsible for the deaths of animals found in fossil troves, such as the dozens of cetacean
Cetacea (; , ) is an infraorder of aquatic mammals belonging to the order Artiodactyla that includes whales, dolphins and porpoises. Key characteristics are their fully aquatic lifestyle, streamlined body shape, often large size and exclusively c ...
skeletons found at Cerro Ballena.
Effects on marine ecosystems
Harmful algal blooms in marine ecosystems have been observed to cause adverse effects to a wide variety of aquatic organisms, most notably marine mammals, sea turtles, seabirds and finfish. The impacts of HAB toxins on these groups can include harmful changes to their developmental, immunological, neurological, or reproductive capacities. The most conspicuous effects of HABs on marine wildlife are large-scale mortality events associated with toxin-producing blooms. For example, a mass mortality event of 107 bottlenose dolphins occurred along the Florida panhandle in the spring of 2004 due to ingestion of contaminated menhaden
Menhaden, also known as mossbunker, bunker, and "the most important fish in the sea", are forage fish of the genera ''Brevoortia'' and ''Ethmidium'', two genera of marine fish in the order Clupeiformes. ''Menhaden'' is a blend of ''poghaden'' ...
with high levels of brevetoxin. Manatee mortalities have also been attributed to brevetoxin but unlike dolphins, the main toxin vector was endemic seagrass species (''Thalassia testudinum'') in which high concentrations of brevetoxins were detected and subsequently found as a main component of the stomach contents of manatees.
Additional marine mammal species, like the highly endangered North Atlantic right whale
The North Atlantic right whale (''Eubalaena glacialis'') is a baleen whale, one of three right whale species belonging to the genus ''Eubalaena'', all of which were formerly classified as a single species. Because of their docile nature, their sl ...
, have been exposed to neurotoxins by preying on highly contaminated zooplankton.[Durbin E et al. (2002) North Atlantic right whale, ''Eubalaena glacialis'', exposed to paralytic shellfish poisoning (PSP) toxins by a zooplankton vector, ''Calanus finmarchicus''. Harmful Algae I, : 243–251 (2002)] With the summertime habitat of this species overlapping with seasonal blooms of the toxic dinoflagellate ''Alexandrium fundyense'', and subsequent copepod grazing, foraging right whales will ingest large concentrations of these contaminated copepods. Ingestion of such contaminated prey can affect respiratory capabilities, feeding behavior, and ultimately the reproductive condition of the population.
Immune system responses have been affected by brevetoxin exposure in another critically endangered species, the loggerhead sea turtle. Brevetoxin exposure, from inhalation of aerosolized toxins and ingestion of contaminated prey, can have clinical signs of increased lethargy and muscle weakness in loggerhead sea turtles causing these animals to wash ashore in a decreased metabolic state with increases of immune system responses upon blood analysis.
Examples of common harmful effects of HABs include:
# the production of neurotoxins which cause mass mortalities in fish, seabirds, sea turtles, and marine mammals
# human illness or death from consumption of seafood contaminated by toxic algae
# mechanical damage to other organisms, such as disruption of epithelial gill tissues in fish, resulting in asphyxiation
# oxygen depletion of the water column (hypoxia or anoxia) from cellular respiration and bacterial degradation
Marine life exposure
HABs occur naturally off coasts all over the world. Marine dinoflagellates produce ichthyotoxins. Where HABs occur, dead fish wash up on shore for up to two weeks after a HAB has been through the area. In addition to killing fish, the toxic algae contaminate shellfish. Some mollusks are not susceptible to the toxin, and store it in their fatty tissues. By consuming the organisms responsible for HABs, shellfish can accumulate and retain saxitoxin produced by these organisms. Saxitoxin blocks sodium channels and ingestion can cause paralysis
Paralysis (: paralyses; also known as plegia) is a loss of Motor skill, motor function in one or more Skeletal muscle, muscles. Paralysis can also be accompanied by a loss of feeling (sensory loss) in the affected area if there is sensory d ...
within 30 minutes.[
]
In addition to directly harming marine animals and vegetation loss, harmful algal blooms can also lead to ocean acidification, which occurs when the amount of carbon dioxide in the water is increased to unnatural levels. Ocean acidification slows the growth of certain species of fish and shellfish, and even prevents shell formation in certain species of mollusks. These subtle, small changes can add up over time to cause chain reactions and devastating effects on whole marine ecosystems.
Other animals that eat exposed shellfish are susceptible to the neurotoxin, which may lead to neurotoxic shellfish poisoning and sometimes even death. Most mollusks and clams filter feed, which results in higher concentrations of the toxin than just drinking the water.[Brand et al., Larry E., Lisa Campbell, Eileen Bresnan. "Karenia: The biology and ecology of a toxic genus." Harmful Algae 14 (2012): 156–178. 6 March 2018.] Scaup, for example, are diving ducks whose diet mainly consists of mollusks. When scaup eat the filter-feeding shellfish that have accumulated high levels of the HAB toxin, their population becomes a prime target for poisoning. However, even birds that do not eat mollusks can be affected by simply eating dead fish on the beach or drinking the water.[Forrester et al., Donald J., Jack M. Gaskin, Franklin H. White. "AN EPIZOOTIC OF WATERFOWL IN FLORIDA." Journal of Wildlife Diseases 13 (1997): 160–167.]
The toxins released by the blooms can kill marine animals including dolphin
A dolphin is an aquatic mammal in the cetacean clade Odontoceti (toothed whale). Dolphins belong to the families Delphinidae (the oceanic dolphins), Platanistidae (the Indian river dolphins), Iniidae (the New World river dolphins), Pontopori ...
s, sea turtles, birds, and manatee
Manatees (, family (biology), family Trichechidae, genus ''Trichechus'') are large, fully aquatic, mostly herbivory, herbivorous marine mammals sometimes known as sea cows. There are three accepted living species of Trichechidae, representing t ...
s. The Florida Manatee, a subspecies of the West Indian Manatee, is a species often impacted by red tide blooms. Florida manatees are often exposed to the poisonous red-tide toxins either by consumption or inhalation. There are many small barnacles, crustaceans, and othe
epiphytes
that grow on the blades of seagrass. These tiny creatures filter particles from the water around them and use these particles as their main food source. During red tide blooms, they also filter the toxic red tide cells from the water, which then becomes concentrated inside them. Although these toxins do not harm epiphytes, they are extremely poisonous to marine creatures who consume (or accidentally consume) the exposed epiphytes, such as manatees. When manatees unknowingly consume exposed epiphytes while grazing on sea grass, the toxins are subsequently released from the epiphytes and ingested by the manatees. In addition to consumption, manatees may also become exposed to air-borne Brevetoxins released from harmful red-tide cells when passing through algal blooms.
Manatees also have an immunoresponse to HABs and their toxins that can make them even more susceptible to other stressors. Due to this susceptibility, manatees can die from either the immediate, or the after effects of the HAB. In addition to causing manatee mortalities, red-tide exposure also causes sever
sublethal health problems among Florida manatee populations
Studies have shown that red-tide exposure among free-ranging Florida manatees has been shown to negatively impact immune functioning by causing increased inflammation, a reduction in lymphocyte proliferation responses, and oxidative stress.
Fish such as Atlantic herring, American pollock, winter flounder, Atlantic salmon, and cod were dosed orally with these toxins in an experiment, and within minutes the subjects started to exhibit a loss of equilibrium and began to swim in an irregular, jerking pattern, followed by paralysis and shallow, arrhythmic breathing and eventually death, after about an hour.[White, A. W. "Sensitivity of Marine Fishes to Toxins from the Red-Tide Dinoflagellate Gonyaulax excavata and Implications for Fish Kills." Marine Biology 65 (1981): 255–260. 6 March 2018.] HABs have been shown to have a negative effect also in the memory functions of sea lions.
Potential remedies
Reducing nutrient runoff
Since many algal blooms are caused by a major influx of nutrient-rich runoff into a water body, programs to treat wastewater, reduce the overuse of fertilizers in agriculture and reducing the bulk flow of runoff can be effective for reducing severe algal blooms at river mouths, estuaries
An estuary is a partially enclosed coastal body of brackish water with one or more rivers or streams flowing into it, and with a free connection to the open sea. Estuaries form a transition zone between river environments and maritime environm ...
, and the ocean directly in front of the river's mouth.
The nitrates and phosphorus in fertilizers cause algal blooms when they run off into lakes and rivers after heavy rains. Modifications in farming methods have been suggested, such as only using fertilizer in a targeted way at the appropriate time exactly where it can do the most good for crops to reduce potential runoff.[Biello, David]
"Deadly Algae Are Everywhere, Thanks to Agriculture"
''Scientific American'', August 8, 2014 A method used successfully is drip irrigation, which instead of widely dispersing fertilizers on fields, drip-irrigates plant roots through a network of tubes and emitters, leaving no traces of fertilizer to be washed away. Drip irrigation also prevents the formation of algal blooms in reservoirs for drinking water while saving up to 50% of water typically used by agriculture.
There have also been proposals to create buffer zones of foliage and wetlands to help filter out the phosphorus before it reaches water. Other experts have suggested using conservation tillage, changing crop rotations, and restoring wetlands. It is possible for some dead zones to shrink within a year under proper management.[Larsen, Janet]
"Dead Zones Increasing in the World's Coastal Waters"
Earth Policy Institute, June 16, 2004
There have been a few success stories in controlling chemicals. After Norway's lobster fishery collapsed in 1986 due to low oxygen levels, for instance, the government in neighboring Denmark took action and reduced phosphorus output by 80 percent which brought oxygen levels closer to normal. Similarly, dead zones in the Black Sea
The Black Sea is a marginal sea, marginal Mediterranean sea (oceanography), mediterranean sea lying between Europe and Asia, east of the Balkans, south of the East European Plain, west of the Caucasus, and north of Anatolia. It is bound ...
and along the Danube River recovered after phosphorus applications by farmers were reduced by 60%.
Nutrients can be permanently removed from wetlands harvesting wetland plants, reducing nutrient influx into surrounding bodies of water. Research is ongoing to determine the efficacy of floating mats of cattails in removing nutrients from surface waters too deep to sustain the growth of wetland plants.
In the U.S., surface runoff is the largest source of nutrients added to rivers and lakes, but is mostly unregulated under the federal Clean Water Act. Locally developed initiatives to reduce nutrient pollution
Nutrient pollution is a form of water pollution caused by too many Nutrient, nutrients entering the water. It is a primary cause of eutrophication of surface waters (lakes, rivers and Coast, coastal waters), in which excess nutrients, usually ni ...
are underway in various areas of the country, such as the Great Lakes
The Great Lakes, also called the Great Lakes of North America, are a series of large interconnected freshwater lakes spanning the Canada–United States border. The five lakes are Lake Superior, Superior, Lake Michigan, Michigan, Lake Huron, H ...
region and the Chesapeake Bay
The Chesapeake Bay ( ) is the largest estuary in the United States. The bay is located in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region and is primarily separated from the Atlantic Ocean by the Delmarva Peninsula, including parts of the Ea ...
. To help reduce algal blooms in Lake Erie
Lake Erie ( ) is the fourth-largest lake by surface area of the five Great Lakes in North America and the eleventh-largest globally. It is the southernmost, shallowest, and smallest by volume of the Great Lakes and also has the shortest avera ...
, the State of Ohio
Ohio ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Lake Erie to the north, Pennsylvania to the east, West Virginia to the southeast, Kentucky to the southwest, Indiana to the ...
presented a plan in 2016 to reduce phosphorus runoff.
Chemical treatment
Although a number of algaecides have been effective in killing algae, they have been used mostly in small bodies of water. For large algal blooms, however, adding algaecides such as silver nitrate or copper sulfate can have worse effects, such as killing fish outright and harming other wildlife.["What is creeping into our lakes?"](_blank)
''Greensburg Daily News'', August 16, 2016 Cyanobacteria can also develop resistance to copper-containing algaecides, requiring a larger quantity of the chemical to be effective for HAB management, but introducing a greater risk to other species in the region. The negative effects can therefore be worse than letting the algae die off naturally.["Toxic algal blooms behind Klamath River dams create health risks far downstream"](_blank)
''Oregon State University News'', June 16, 2015
In 2019, Chippewa Lake in Northeast Ohio became the first lake in the U.S. to successfully test a new chemical treatment. The chemical formula killed all of the toxic algae in the lake within a single day. The formula has already been used in China, South Africa and Israel.
In February 2020, Roodeplaat Dam in Gauteng
Gauteng ( , ; Sotho-Tswana languages, Sotho-Tswana for 'place of gold'; or ) is one of the nine provinces of South Africa.
Situated on the Highveld, Gauteng is the smallest province by land area in South Africa. Although Gauteng accounts f ...
Province, South Africa
South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...
was treated with a new algicide formulation against a severe bloom of '' Microcystis'' sp. This formulation allows the granular product to float and slow-release its active ingredient, sodium percarbonate, that releases hydrogen peroxide
Hydrogen peroxide is a chemical compound with the formula . In its pure form, it is a very pale blue liquid that is slightly more viscosity, viscous than Properties of water, water. It is used as an oxidizer, bleaching agent, and antiseptic, usua ...
(H2O2), on the water surface. Consequently, the effective concentrations are limited, vertically, to the surface of the water; and spatially to areas where cyanobacteria
Cyanobacteria ( ) are a group of autotrophic gram-negative bacteria that can obtain biological energy via oxygenic photosynthesis. The name "cyanobacteria" () refers to their bluish green (cyan) color, which forms the basis of cyanobacteri ...
are abundant. This provide the aquatic organisms a "safe haven" in untreated areas and avoids the adverse effects associated with the use of standard algicides.
Bioactive compounds isolated from terrestrial and aquatic plants, particularly seaweeds, have seen results as a more environmentally friendly control for HABs. Molecules found in seaweeds such as Corallina, Sargassum, and Saccharina japonica
''Saccharina japonica'' is a marine (ocean), marine species of the Phaeophyceae (brown algae) class, a type of kelp or seaweed, which is extensively cultivated on ropes between the seas of China, Japan and Korea. It has the common name sweet kel ...
have shown to inhibit some bloom-forming microalgae. In addition to their anti-microalgal effects, the bioactive molecules found in these seaweeds also have antibacterial, antifungal, and antioxidant properties.
Removal of HABs using aluminum-modified clay
Other chemicals are being tested for their efficacy for removing cyanobacteria during blooms. Modified clays, such as aluminum chloride modified clay (AC-MC), aluminum sulfide modified clay (AS-MC) and polyaluminum chloride modified clay (PAC-MC) have shown positive results ''in vitro'' for the removal of Aureococcus by trapping the microalgae in the sediment of clay, removing it from the top layer of water where harmful blooms can occur.
Many efforts have been made in an attempt to control HAB's so that the harm that they cause can be kept at a minimum. Studies into the use of clay to control HAB's have proven that this method may be an effective way to reduce the negative effects caused by HAB's. The addition of aluminum chloride, aluminum sulfate, or polyaluminum chloride to clay can modify the clay surface and increase its efficiency in the removal of HAB's from a body of water. The addition of aluminum-containing compounds causes the clay particles to achieve a positive charge, with these particles then undergoing flocculation
In colloidal chemistry, flocculation is a process by which colloidal particles come out of Suspension (chemistry), suspension to sediment in the form of floc or flake, either spontaneously or due to the addition of a clarifying agent. The actio ...
with the harmful algae cells. The algae cells then group together: becoming a sediment
Sediment is a solid material that is transported to a new location where it is deposited. It occurs naturally and, through the processes of weathering and erosion, is broken down and subsequently sediment transport, transported by the action of ...
instead of a suspension. The process of flocculation will limit the bloom growth and reduce the impact in which the bloom can have on an area.
In the Netherlands, successful algae and phosphate removal from surface water has been obtained by pumping affected water through a hydrodynamic separator. The treated water is then free from algae and contains a significant lower amount of phosphate since the removed algae cells contain a lot of phosphate. The treated water also gets a lower turbidity. Future projects will study the positive effects on the ecology and marine life as it is expected plant life will be restored and a reduction in bottom dwelling fish will automatically reduce the turbidity of the cleaned water. The removed algae and phosphate may find its way not as waste but as infeed to bio digesters.
Additional reservoirs
Other experts have proposed building reservoirs to prevent the movement of algae downstream. However, that can lead to the growth of algae within the reservoir, which become sediment traps with a resultant buildup of nutrients. Some researchers found that intensive blooms in reservoirs were the primary source of toxic algae observed downstream, but the movement of algae has so far been less studied, although it is considered a likely cause of algae transport.
Restoring shellfish populations
The decline of filter-feeding shellfish populations, such as oysters
Oyster is the common name for a number of different families of Seawater, salt-water bivalve molluscs that live in Marine (ocean), marine or Brackish water, brackish habitats. In some species, the valves are highly Calcification, calcified, a ...
, likely contribute to HAB occurrence. As such, numerous research projects are assessing the potential of restored shellfish populations to reduce HAB occurrence.
Improved monitoring
Other remedies include using improved monitoring methods, trying to improve predictability, and testing new potential methods of controlling HABs. Some countries surrounding the Baltic Sea, which has the world's largest dead zone, have considered using massive geoengineering options, such as forcing air into bottom layers to aerate them.
Mathematical models are useful to predict future algal blooms.
Sensors and monitoring devices
A growing number of scientists agree that there is an urgent need to protect the public by being able to forecast harmful algal blooms. One way they hope to do that is with sophisticated sensors which can help warn about potential blooms. The same types of sensors can also be used by water treatment facilities to help them prepare for higher toxic levels.
The only sensors now in use are located in the Gulf of Mexico. In 2008 similar sensors in the Gulf forewarned of an increased level of toxins that led to a shutdown of shellfish harvesting in Texas along with a recall of mussels, clams, and oysters, possibly saving many lives. With an increase in the size and frequency of HABs, experts state the need for significantly more sensors located around the country. The same kinds of sensors can also be used to detect threats to drinking water from intentional contamination.
Satellite and remote sensing technologies are growing in importance for monitoring, tracking, and detecting HABs. Four U.S. federal agencies—EPA, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA ) is an independent agency of the US federal government responsible for the United States's civil space program, aeronautics research and space research. Established in 1958, it su ...
(NASA), NOAA, and the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS)—are working on ways to detect and measure cyanobacteria blooms using satellite data. The data may help develop early-warning indicators of cyanobacteria blooms by monitoring both local and national coverage.["Remote Sensing Provides a National View of Cyanobacteria Blooms"](_blank)
, USGS In 2016 automated early-warning monitoring systems were successfully tested, and for the first time proven to identify the rapid growth of algae and the subsequent depletion of oxygen in the water.
Examples
Notable occurrences
* 1530: First alleged case off the Florida
Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...
Gulf Coast is without foundation. According to Marine Lab at University of Miami, the first possible Red Tide in Florida was in 1844. Earlier "signs" were from boats sorting fish on their way to home port dumping trash fish overboard. Thus "dead fish" reports along the coast were not Red Tide.
* 1793: The first recorded case occurring in British Columbia
British Columbia is the westernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Situated in the Pacific Northwest between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains, the province has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that ...
, Canada
Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...
.
* 1840: No deaths of humans have been attributed to Florida red tide, but people may experience respiratory irritation (coughing, sneezing, and tearing) when the red tide organism (''Karenia brevis'') is present along a coast and winds blow its aerosolized toxins. Swimming is usually safe, but skin irritation and burning is possible in areas of high concentration of red tide.
* 1844: First possible case off the Florida Gulf Coast according to Marine Lab University of Miami, probably by ships off shore, no known inhabitants of the coast reporting.
* 1901: '' Lingulodinium polyedrum'' produces brilliant displays of bioluminescence in warm coastal waters. Seen in Southern California
Southern California (commonly shortened to SoCal) is a geographic and Cultural area, cultural List of regions of California, region that generally comprises the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. Its densely populated coastal reg ...
regularly since at least 1901.
* 1916: Massive fish kill along SW Florida coast. Noxious air thought to be seismic underwater explosion releasing chlorine gas.
* 1947: Southwest Florida: A massive bloom that lasts close a year almost destroys the commercial fishing industry and sponge beds. The resulting poisoned surf caused beaches to need to be evacuated.
* 1972: A red tide was caused in New England by a toxic dinoflagellate ''Alexandrium (Gonyaulax) tamarense''. The red tides caused by the dinoflagellate '' Gonyaulax'' are serious because this organism produces saxitoxin and gonyautoxins which accumulate in shellfish and if ingested may lead to paralytic shellfish poisoning (PSP) and can lead to death.
* 1972 and 1973: Red tides killed two villagers west of Port Moresby. In March 1973 a red tide invaded Port Moresby Harbour and destroyed a Japanese pearl farm.
* In 1972, a red tide was caused in New England
New England is a region consisting of six states in the Northeastern United States: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. It is bordered by the state of New York (state), New York to the west and by the ...
by a toxic dinoflagellate '' Alexandrium (Gonyaulax) tamarense''.
* 1976: The first PSP case in Sabah
Sabah () is a States and federal territories of Malaysia, state of Malaysia located in northern Borneo, in the region of East Malaysia. Sabah has land borders with the Malaysian state of Sarawak to the southwest and Indonesia's North Kalima ...
, Malaysian Borneo where 202 victims were reported to be suffering and 7 deaths.
* 1987: A red algae bloom in Prince Edward Island
Prince Edward Island is an island Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. While it is the smallest province by land area and population, it is the most densely populated. The island has several nicknames: "Garden of the Gulf", ...
caused over a million dollars in losses.
* 1991: The largest algal bloom on record was the 1991 Darling River cyanobacterial bloom in Australia, largely of '' Anabaena circinalis'', between October and December 1991 over of the Barwon and Darling Rivers.
* 2005: The Canadian red tide was discovered to have come further south than it has in years prior by the ship (R/V) Oceanus, closing shellfish beds in Maine and Massachusetts and alerting authorities as far south as Montauk (Long Island
Long Island is a densely populated continental island in southeastern New York (state), New York state, extending into the Atlantic Ocean. It constitutes a significant share of the New York metropolitan area in both population and land are ...
, NY) to check their beds. Experts who discovered the reproductive cysts in the seabed warn of a possible spread to Long Island in the future, halting the area's fishing and shellfish industry and threatening the tourist trade, which constitutes a significant portion of the island's economy.
* In 2008 large blooms of the algae ''Cochlodinium polykrikoid'' were found along the Chesapeake Bay and nearby tributaries such as the James River, causing millions of dollars in damage and numerous beach closures.
* In 2009, Brittany, France experienced recurring macroalgal blooms caused by the high amount of fertilizer discharging in the sea due to intensive pig farming, causing lethal gas emissions that have led to one case of human unconsciousness and three animal deaths.
* In 2010, dissolved iron in the ash from the Eyjafjallajökull
Eyjafjallajökull (; "glacier of (the mountain) Eyjafjöll"), sometimes referred to by the numeronym E15, is one of the smaller ice caps of Iceland, north of Skógar and west of Mýrdalsjökull. The ice cap covers the caldera of a volcano wi ...
volcano triggered a plankton bloom in the North Atlantic
The Atlantic Ocean is the second largest of the world's five oceanic divisions, with an area of about . It covers approximately 17% of Earth's surface and about 24% of its water surface area. During the Age of Discovery, it was known for ...
.
* 2011: Northern California
* 2011: Gulf of Mexico
The Gulf of Mexico () is an oceanic basin and a marginal sea of the Atlantic Ocean, mostly surrounded by the North American continent. It is bounded on the northeast, north, and northwest by the Gulf Coast of the United States; on the southw ...
* In 2013, an algal bloom was caused in Qingdao
Qingdao, Mandarin: , (Qingdao Mandarin: t͡ɕʰiŋ˧˩ tɒ˥) is a prefecture-level city in the eastern Shandong Province of China. Located on China's Yellow Sea coast, Qingdao was long an important fortress. In 1897, the city was ceded to G ...
, China
China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...
, by sea lettuce
The sea lettuces comprise the genus ''Ulva'', a group of edible green algae that is widely distributed along the coasts of the world's oceans. The type species within the genus ''Ulva'' is ''Ulva lactuca'', wikt:lactuca, ''lactuca'' being Latin ...
.
* 2013: In January, a red tide occurred again on the West Coast Sea
A sea is a large body of salt water. There are particular seas and the sea. The sea commonly refers to the ocean, the interconnected body of seawaters that spans most of Earth. Particular seas are either marginal seas, second-order section ...
of Sabah
Sabah () is a States and federal territories of Malaysia, state of Malaysia located in northern Borneo, in the region of East Malaysia. Sabah has land borders with the Malaysian state of Sarawak to the southwest and Indonesia's North Kalima ...
in the Malaysian Borneo. Two human fatalities were reported after they consumed shellfish contaminated with the red tide toxin.
* 2013: In January, a red tide bloom appeared at Sarasota beach – mainly Siesta Key, Florida causing a fish kill that had a negative impact on tourists, and caused respiratory issues for beach-goers.
* In 2014, '' Myrionecta rubra'' (previously known as ''Mesodinium rubrum''), a ciliate
The ciliates are a group of alveolates characterized by the presence of hair-like organelles called cilia, which are identical in structure to flagellum, eukaryotic flagella, but are in general shorter and present in much larger numbers, with a ...
protist that ingests cryptomonad algae, caused a bloom in southeastern coast of Brazil
Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...
.
* In 2014, blue green algae caused a bloom in the western basin of Lake Erie
Lake Erie ( ) is the fourth-largest lake by surface area of the five Great Lakes in North America and the eleventh-largest globally. It is the southernmost, shallowest, and smallest by volume of the Great Lakes and also has the shortest avera ...
, poisoning the Toledo, Ohio
Toledo ( ) is a city in Lucas County, Ohio, United States, and its county seat. It is located at the western end of Lake Erie along the Maumee River. Toledo is the List of cities in Ohio, fourth-most populous city in Ohio and List of United Sta ...
water system connected to 500,000 people.
* 2014: In August, massive 'Florida red tide' long and wide.
* 2015: June, 12 persons hospitalized in the Philippine province of Bohol
Bohol (), officially the Province of Bohol (; ), is an island province of the Philippines located in the Central Visayas Regions of the Philippines, region, consisting of the island itself and 75 minor surrounding islands. It is home to Bohola ...
for red tide poisoning.
* 2015: August, several beaches in the Netherlands between Katwijk
Katwijk () is a coastal municipality and town in the province of South Holland, which is situated in the mid-western part of the Netherlands.
The Oude Rijn (Utrecht and South Holland), Oude Rijn ("Old Rhine") river flows through the town and i ...
and Scheveningen were plagued. Government institutions dissuaded swimmers from entering the water.
* 2015: September, a red tide bloom occurred in the Gulf of Mexico, affecting Padre Island National Seashore
Padre Island National Seashore (PINS) is a national seashore administered by the National Park Service, located on Padre Island off the coast of South Texas, USA. In contrast to South Padre Island, Texas, South Padre Island, known for its beach ...
along North Padre Island
North Padre Island is a barrier island along the coast of Texas. It and South Padre Island were formed after the creation of the Port Mansfield Channel split Padre Island in two. From north to south, North Padre Island is located in parts of Nu ...
and South Padre Island
South Padre Island is a barrier island in the U.S. state of Texas. The remote landform is located in Cameron County, Willacy County, and accessible by the Queen Isabella Causeway. South Padre Island was formed when the creation of the Port Ma ...
in Texas.
* 2017 and 2018: ''K. brevis'' red tide algae with warnings not to swim, state of emergency declared, dead dolphin
A dolphin is an aquatic mammal in the cetacean clade Odontoceti (toothed whale). Dolphins belong to the families Delphinidae (the oceanic dolphins), Platanistidae (the Indian river dolphins), Iniidae (the New World river dolphins), Pontopori ...
and manatee
Manatees (, family (biology), family Trichechidae, genus ''Trichechus'') are large, fully aquatic, mostly herbivory, herbivorous marine mammals sometimes known as sea cows. There are three accepted living species of Trichechidae, representing t ...
, worsened by Caloosahatchee River. Peaked in the summer of 2018. Toxic harmful algae bloom red tide in Southwest Florida. A rare harmful algal bloom along Florida's east coast of Palm Beach County occurred the weekend of September 30, 2018.
* In 2019, blue-green algae, or Cyanobacteria
Cyanobacteria ( ) are a group of autotrophic gram-negative bacteria that can obtain biological energy via oxygenic photosynthesis. The name "cyanobacteria" () refers to their bluish green (cyan) color, which forms the basis of cyanobacteri ...
blooms, were again problematic on Lake Erie. In early August 2019, satellite images depicted a bloom stretching up to 1,300 square kilometers, with the epicentre near Toledo, Ohio
Toledo ( ) is a city in Lucas County, Ohio, United States, and its county seat. It is located at the western end of Lake Erie along the Maumee River. Toledo is the List of cities in Ohio, fourth-most populous city in Ohio and List of United Sta ...
. The largest Lake Erie bloom to date occurred in 2015, exceeding the severity index at 10.5 and in 2011 at a 10. A large bloom does not necessarily mean the cyanobacteria ... will produce toxins", said Michael McKay, of the University of Windsor. Water quality testing was underway in August.
* In 2019, a bloom of ''Noctiluca'' algae caused bioluminescent glow off the coast of Chennai, India. Similar blooms have been reported annually in the northern Arabian Sea
The Arabian Sea () is a region of sea in the northern Indian Ocean, bounded on the west by the Arabian Peninsula, Gulf of Aden and Guardafui Channel, on the northwest by Gulf of Oman and Iran, on the north by Pakistan, on the east by India, and ...
since the early 2000s.
* 2021: In July, a large red tide occurred on the Gulf Coast of Florida in and around Tampa Bay. The event has caused the death of millions of pounds of fish, and led to the National Weather Service declaring a Beach Hazard.
* 2021: in October, the mass deaths of shellfish (specifically crabs and lobster) on the beaches of Northern England, led to and algal bloom being blamed as the cause by the UK Government. However, those who work in the fishing industry in the area, and some academics, have stated that pyridine poisoning is the cause.
* 2023: A blue-green algae bloom occurred in Lough Neagh
Lough Neagh ( ; ) is a freshwater lake in Northern Ireland and is the largest lake on the island of Ireland and in the British Isles. It has a surface area of and is about long and wide. According to Northern Ireland Water, it supplies 4 ...
, Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland ( ; ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, part of the United Kingdom in the north-east of the island of Ireland. It has been #Descriptions, variously described as a country, province or region. Northern Ireland shares Repub ...
, the largest fresh water lake in the UK and Ireland
Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...
where 40% of Northern Ireland gets its tap water from. It is caused by Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland ( ; ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, part of the United Kingdom in the north-east of the island of Ireland. It has been #Descriptions, variously described as a country, province or region. Northern Ireland shares Repub ...
experiencing both the wettest and hottest summer on record making conditions perfect for blue-green algae. Poor management of the Lough is being blamed. The bloom has killed dogs and wildlife, including swans.
United States
In July 2016 Florida
Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...
declared a state of emergency
A state of emergency is a situation in which a government is empowered to put through policies that it would normally not be permitted to do, for the safety and protection of its citizens. A government can declare such a state before, during, o ...
for four counties as a result of blooms. They were said to be "destroying" a number of businesses and affecting local economies, with many needing to shut down entirely. Some beaches were closed, and hotels and restaurants suffered a drop in business. Tourist sporting activities such as fishing and boating were also affected.["Toxic algae driving away Florida beachgoers"](_blank)
''CNBC'', July 5, 2016
In 2019, the biggest Sargassum bloom ever seen created a crisis in the Tourism industry
Tourism is travel for pleasure, and the Commerce, commercial activity of providing and supporting such travel. World Tourism Organization, UN Tourism defines tourism more generally, in terms which go "beyond the common perception of tourism as ...
in North America
North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere, Northern and Western Hemisphere, Western hemispheres. North America is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South Ameri ...
. This event was likely caused by climate change and nutrient pollution
Nutrient pollution is a form of water pollution caused by too many Nutrient, nutrients entering the water. It is a primary cause of eutrophication of surface waters (lakes, rivers and Coast, coastal waters), in which excess nutrients, usually ni ...
from fertilizers. Several Caribbean countries considered declaring a state of emergency due to the impact on tourism as a result of environmental damage and potentially toxic and harmful health effects.
On the U.S. coasts
The Gulf of Maine frequently experiences blooms of the dinoflagellate
The Dinoflagellates (), also called Dinophytes, are a monophyletic group of single-celled eukaryotes constituting the phylum Dinoflagellata and are usually considered protists. Dinoflagellates are mostly marine plankton, but they are also commo ...
'' Alexandrium fundyense'', an organism that produces saxitoxin, the neurotoxin responsible for paralytic shellfish poisoning. The well-known "Florida red tide" that occurs in the Gulf of Mexico is a HAB caused by '' Karenia brevis'', another dinoflagellate which produces brevetoxin, the neurotoxin responsible for neurotoxic shellfish poisoning. California coastal waters also experience seasonal blooms of '' Pseudo-nitzschia'', a diatom
A diatom (Neo-Latin ''diatoma'') is any member of a large group comprising several Genus, genera of algae, specifically microalgae, found in the oceans, waterways and soils of the world. Living diatoms make up a significant portion of Earth's B ...
known to produce domoic acid
Domoic acid (DA) is a kainic acid-type neurotoxin that causes amnesic shellfish poisoning (ASP). It is produced by algae and accumulates in shellfish, sardines, and anchovies. When sea lions, otters, cetaceans, humans, and other predators eat cont ...
, the neurotoxin responsible for amnesic shellfish poisoning.
The term red tide is most often used in the US to refer to '' Karenia brevis'' blooms in the eastern Gulf of Mexico
The Gulf of Mexico () is an oceanic basin and a marginal sea of the Atlantic Ocean, mostly surrounded by the North American continent. It is bounded on the northeast, north, and northwest by the Gulf Coast of the United States; on the southw ...
, also called the Florida red tide. ''K. brevis'' is one of many different species of the genus ''Karenia'' found in the world's oceans.
Major advances have occurred in the study of dinoflagellates and their genomics. Some include identification of the toxin-producing genes ( ''PKS'' genes), exploration of environmental changes (temperature, light/dark, etc.) have on gene expression, as well as an appreciation of the complexity of the ''Karenia'' genome. These blooms have been documented since the 1800s, and occur almost annually along Florida's coasts.
There was increased research activity of harmful algae blooms (HABs) in the 1980s and 1990s. This was primarily driven by media attention from the discovery of new HAB organisms and the potential adverse health effects of their exposure to animals and humans. The Florida red tides have been observed to have spread as far as the eastern coast of Mexico. The density of these organisms during a bloom can exceed tens of millions of cells per litre of seawater, and often discolor the water a deep reddish-brown hue.
Red tide is also sometimes used to describe harmful algal blooms on the northeast coast of the United States, particularly in the Gulf of Maine. This type of bloom is caused by another species of dinoflagellate known as '' Alexandrium fundyense''. These blooms of organisms cause severe disruptions in fisheries of these waters, as the toxins in these organism cause filter-feeding shellfish in affected waters to become poisonous for human consumption due to saxitoxin.
The related '' Alexandrium monilatum'' is found in subtropical or tropical shallow seas and estuaries
An estuary is a partially enclosed coastal body of brackish water with one or more rivers or streams flowing into it, and with a free connection to the open sea. Estuaries form a transition zone between river environments and maritime environm ...
in the western Atlantic Ocean
The Atlantic Ocean is the second largest of the world's five borders of the oceans, oceanic divisions, with an area of about . It covers approximately 17% of Earth#Surface, Earth's surface and about 24% of its water surface area. During the ...
, the Caribbean Sea
The Caribbean Sea is a sea of the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean in the tropics of the Western Hemisphere, located south of the Gulf of Mexico and southwest of the Sargasso Sea. It is bounded by the Greater Antilles to the north from Cuba ...
, the Gulf of Mexico, and the eastern Pacific Ocean
The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five Borders of the oceans, oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean, or, depending on the definition, to Antarctica in the south, and is ...
.
Texas
Natural water reservoirs in Texas
Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...
have been threatened by anthropogenic activities due to large petroleum refineries and oil wells (i.e. emission and wastewater discharge), massive agricultural activities (i.e. pesticide release) and mining extractions (i.e. toxic wastewater) as well as natural phenomena involving frequent HAB events. For the first time in 1985, the state of Texas documented the presence of the ''P. parvum'' (golden alga) bloom along the Pecos River. This phenomenon has affected 33 reservoirs in Texas along major river systems, including the Brazos, Canadian, Rio Grande, Colorado, and Red River, and has resulted in the death of more than 27 million fish and caused tens of millions of dollars in damage.
Chesapeake Bay
The Chesapeake Bay
The Chesapeake Bay ( ) is the largest estuary in the United States. The bay is located in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region and is primarily separated from the Atlantic Ocean by the Delmarva Peninsula, including parts of the Ea ...
, the largest estuary
An estuary is a partially enclosed coastal body of brackish water with one or more rivers or streams flowing into it, and with a free connection to the open sea. Estuaries form a transition zone between river environments and maritime enviro ...
in the U.S., has suffered from repeated large algal blooms for decades due to chemical runoff from multiple sources, including 9 large rivers and 141 smaller streams and creeks in parts of six states. In addition, the water is quite shallow and only 1% of the waste entering it gets flushed into the ocean.
By weight, 60% of the phosphates entering the bay in 2003 were from sewage treatment plants, while 60% of its nitrates came from fertilizer runoff, farm animal waste, and the atmosphere. About 300 million pounds (140 Gg) of nitrates are added to the bay each year. The population increase in the bay watershed, from 3.7 million people in 1940 to 18 million in 2015 is also a major factor, as economic growth leads to the increased use of fertilizers and rising emissions of industrial waste.
As of 2015, the six states and the local governments in the Chesapeake watershed have upgraded their sewage treatment plants to control nutrient discharges. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) estimates that sewage treatment plant improvements in the Chesapeake region between 1985 and 2015 have prevented the discharge of 900 million pounds (410 Gg) of nutrients, with nitrogen discharges reduced by 57% and phosphorus by 75%. Agricultural and urban runoff pollution continue to be major sources of nutrients in the bay, and efforts to manage those problems are continuing throughout the watershed.
Lake Erie
Recent algae blooms in Lake Erie have been fed primarily by agricultural runoff and have led to warnings for some people in Canada and Ohio not to drink their water. The International Joint Commission has called on United States and Canada to drastically reduce phosphorus loads into Lake Erie to address the threat.
Green Bay
Green Bay has a dead zone caused by phosphorus pollution that appears to be getting worse.
Okeechobee Waterway
Lake Okeechobee is an ideal habitat for cyanobacteria because its shallow, sunny, and laden with nutrients from Florida's agriculture. The Okeechobee Waterway connects the lake to the Atlantic Ocean
The Atlantic Ocean is the second largest of the world's five borders of the oceans, oceanic divisions, with an area of about . It covers approximately 17% of Earth#Surface, Earth's surface and about 24% of its water surface area. During the ...
and the Gulf of Mexico
The Gulf of Mexico () is an oceanic basin and a marginal sea of the Atlantic Ocean, mostly surrounded by the North American continent. It is bounded on the northeast, north, and northwest by the Gulf Coast of the United States; on the southw ...
through the St. Lucie River and the Caloosahatchee respectively. This means that harmful algal blooms are carried down the estuaries as water is released during the wet summer months. In July 2018 up to 90% of Lake Okeechobee was covered in algae. Water draining from the lake filled the region with a noxious odor and caused respiratory problems in some humans during the following month. To make matters worse, harmful red tide blooms are historically common on Florida's coasts during these same summer months. Cyanobacteria in the rivers die as they reach saltwater but their nitrogen fixation feeds the red tide on the coast. Areas at the mouth of the estuaries such as Cape Coral and Port St. Lucie therefore experience the compounded effects of both types of harmful algal bloom. Cleanup crews hired by authorities in Lee County - where the Caloosahatchee meets the Gulf of Mexico - removed more than 1700 tons of dead marine life in August 2018.
Baltic Sea
In 2020, a large harmful algal bloom closed beaches in Poland and Finland, brought on by a combination of fertilizer runoff and extreme heat, posing a risk to flounder and mussel beds. This is seen by the Baltic Sea Action Group as a threat to biodiversity and regional fishing stocks.
Coastal seas of Bangladesh, India, and Pakistan
Open defecation is common in south Asia, but human waste is an often overlooked source of nutrient pollution in marine pollution modeling. When nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) contributed by human waste was included in models for Bangladesh, India, and Pakistan, the estimated N and P inputs to bodies of water increased one to two orders of magnitude compared to previous models. River export of nutrients to coastal seas increases coastal eutrophication
Eutrophication is a general term describing a process in which nutrients accumulate in a body of water, resulting in an increased growth of organisms that may deplete the oxygen in the water; ie. the process of too many plants growing on the s ...
potential (ICEP). The ICEP of the Godavari River is three times higher when N and P inputs from human waste are included.
See also
* Brevetoxin
* Ciguatera
* Cyanobacterial bloom
* Cyanotoxin
* GEOHAB - an international research programme on the Global Ecology and Oceanography of Harmful algal blooms
* Milky seas effect – A phenomenon in which disturbed red algae dinoflagellates will make the water glow blue, at night
* '' Pfiesteria''
* Thin layers (oceanography)
* Water quality
Water quality refers to the chemical, physical, and biological characteristics of water based on the standards of its usage. It is most frequently used by reference to a set of standards against which compliance, generally achieved through tr ...
* Water security
References
External links
International Society for the Study of Harmful Algae (ISSHA)
FAQ about Harmful Algal Blooms
(NOAA)
Harmful Algal Blooms Observing System
(NOAA/HAB-OFS)
GEOHAB: The International IOC-SCOR Research Programme on the Global Ecology and Oceanography of Harmful Algal Blooms
{{Authority control
Biological oceanography
Aquatic ecology
Fishing industry
Water quality indicators
Human impact on the environment
Agriculture and the environment
Climate change and the environment
Water pollution
Algal blooms
Red tide
Dinoflagellate biology
Fisheries science