MANATEE COUNTY, Fla. — Over the past week, the red tide organism "Karenia brevis" was detected along Florida's Gulf Coast.
The organism was found in a total of 74 samples with 46 of them having bloom concentrations.
One was found in Manatee County while 32 were detected in and offshore of Sarasota County. The rest were found in Charlotte, Lee and Collier counties.
The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conversation Commission broke down details of the samplings from the past week:
- In Southwest Florida over the past week, K. brevis was observed at background concentrations in Pinellas County, very low to medium concentrations in Manatee County, very low to high concentrations in and offshore of Sarasota County, medium and high concentrations in Charlotte County, very low to high concentrations in Lee County, and medium concentrations in Collier County.
- In Northwest Florida over the past week, K. brevis was observed at background concentrations in one sample from Santa Rosa County.
- Along the Florida East Coast over the past week, K. brevis was not observed.
There have been reports of fish kills suspected to be related to red tide over the past week in Manatee, Sarasota, Charlotte and Lee counties.
To find more information on red tide in your area, click here.
