Redtide in Florida

Michael Naegeli · Aug 23, 2018

What an absolutely Horrible outbreak we are having down here... the worse (bye far) I’ve seen in 25 years living down here. I’m down near Siesta Key and I work outside on Casey Key and there are literally millions of dead fish on the beach and floating in the gulf and Bay. It’s just Crazy horrible! I live 10 miles east of the beaches and I today can smell dead fish at my house. I’m actually starting to worry about my Reef Tanks. Even the lake in my backyard seemingly is affected too. This is a man made disaster and man needs to fix this. It’s destroying little Reefs all over Florida and it’s incredibly sad!!

Cnidoblast · Aug 23, 2018

Could always use a crapload of activated charcoal in your tank if you are concerned about aerosol toxins:
https://reefs.com/2017/01/01/activated-carbon-can-completely-detoxify-palytoxin/

reefertank · Aug 23, 2018

Cnidoblast said:
Could always use a crapload of activated charcoal in your tank if you are concerned about aerosol toxins:
https://reefs.com/2017/01/01/activated-carbon-can-completely-detoxify-palytoxin/

Ya really sad, I was just down there last weekend, it happens every year but NEVER like this!

Pennywise the Clown · Aug 24, 2018

Sorry to hear that the red tide is back. I was holidaying on Anna Maria Island a couple of years ago (from UK) and there was another outbreak. Thousands of dead fish washing up on the beaches.
I'm back on AMI in just over a week.

LouisianaReef · Aug 24, 2018

The conditions of the worlds oceans are sad. I live near of Gulf of Mexico and the conditions aren't much better.

Zeal · Aug 24, 2018

Live in South Florida I realllyyyyy wanna go collect some hermits/snail/random stuff from the keys but I'm worried I might transfer something into my tank

LouisianaReef · Aug 24, 2018

I have a few hermits from the Louisiana coast in my tank, they are the best tank cleaners that I have ever had, but they are bulldozers and will knock everything down. No other problems than that.

cracker · Sep 7, 2018

Michael Naegeli said:
What an absolutely Horrible outbreak we are having down here... the worse (bye far) I’ve seen in 25 years living down here. I’m down near Siesta Key and I work outside on Casey Key and there are literally millions of dead fish on the beach and floating in the gulf and Bay. It’s just Crazy horrible! I live 10 miles east of the beaches and I today can smell dead fish at my house. I’m actually starting to worry about my Reef Tanks. Even the lake in my backyard seemingly is affected too. This is a man made disaster and man needs to fix this. It’s destroying little Reefs all over Florida and it’s incredibly sad!!

Hello, Micheal I'm up on the east coast of Fl . I agree with You 100%. Problem is there a "lot" of big money held by the agricultural company's . it's been proven beyond my need that the runoff loaded with fertilizers& livestock also is the major cause of all this. I'm still waiting to hear what these candidates running in the upcoming elections have to say about it . Iv'e heard Rick Scott mention it briefly & a democratic candidate also.

Dennco2000 · Sep 13, 2018

My water balance is getting all screwed up because I have always just went to the end of my dock or a little ways offshore to get water, now its been months since I have done a water change and I have lost most of my
hard corals. Everything else is doing okay but no end in site... Don't vote for Rick Scott or Bill Nelson they've been turning their heads to this for years.
Please correct me if I'm wrong?

Dennco2000 · Sep 13, 2018

My water parameters are getting all screwed up because for 4.5 years I just get my water off the end of the dock or maybe go a mile or 2 offshore but since this red tide I havent done a water change in over 3 months.
Ive lost most of my hard corals but fortunately everything else is okay. I dont plan to vote for Rick Scott or Bill Nelson since they've been useless to me during their whole corrupt careers. Ones a thief the other a bible
thumper IMO.

OhDumb · Sep 13, 2018

Dennco2000 said:
My water parameters are getting all screwed up because for 4.5 years I just get my water off the end of the dock or maybe go a mile or 2 offshore but since this red tide I havent done a water change in over 3 months.
Ive lost most of my hard corals but fortunately everything else is okay. I dont plan to vote for Rick Scott or Bill Nelson since they've been useless to me during their whole corrupt careers. Ones a thief the other a bible
thumper IMO.

Just go buy some saltwater from a LFS. Or order some salt and mix some. No reason to let your tank go because you can't use natural seawater for a short while.

SurfLife · Sep 14, 2018

Michael Naegeli said:
What an absolutely Horrible outbreak we are having down here... ... This is a man made disaster and man needs to fix this.

Yeah, this years red tide has been a mess. Fortunately the Manatees around Islamorada are doing fine.

As for blame...
What Causes Red Tide?
Major factors influencing red tide events include warm ocean surface temperatures, low salinity, high nutrient content, calm seas, and rain followed by sunny days during the summer months (NOAA). In addition, algae related to red tide can spread or be carried long distances by winds, currents, storms, or ships.

In Florida, red tide is caused by a naturally occurring microscopic alga (a plant-like microorganism) called Karenia brevis or K. brevis. ... Red tides or harmful algal blooms (HABs) occur worldwide.

Man made????
Red tide outbreaks have been happening for a long time. Outbreaks were first recorded in Florida's west coast when European explorers arrived there in the 1500s. Blooms typically occur in the late summer and can persist into the late fall or early winter months.
Read more at: https://phys.org/news/2018-08-florida-red-tide.html

What was man doing in the 1500's to cause this?

reefertank · Sep 14, 2018

Time machines explains it all

jduong916 · Sep 14, 2018

Michael Naegeli said:
What an absolutely Horrible outbreak we are having down here... the worse (bye far) I’ve seen in 25 years living down here. I’m down near Siesta Key and I work outside on Casey Key and there are literally millions of dead fish on the beach and floating in the gulf and Bay. It’s just Crazy horrible! I live 10 miles east of the beaches and I today can smell dead fish at my house. I’m actually starting to worry about my Reef Tanks. Even the lake in my backyard seemingly is affected too. This is a man made disaster and man needs to fix this. It’s destroying little Reefs all over Florida and it’s incredibly sad!!

Is it really man made?

Js.Aqua.Project · Sep 14, 2018

Dennco2000 said:
My water balance is getting all screwed up because I have always just went to the end of my dock or a little ways offshore to get water, now its been months since I have done a water change and I have lost most of my
hard corals. Everything else is doing okay but no end in site... Don't vote for Rick Scott or Bill Nelson they've been turning their heads to this for years.
Please correct me if I'm wrong?

Not going political but here is what I know from Nelson and Scott on the Rid Tide outbreak:

Nelson - sought and recieved appropriated funding from the Senate to help local business affected by the Red Tide outbreak, sought funds to determine if red tide outbreak was caused/increased caused by fertilizer run off

Scott - Blames the federal government for not doing enough - claims the federal government runs the dikes/dams around Lake O so the federal government should fix it (this is per his own attack ad on Nelson), declared an "emergency" and provided funds to study outbreak (MOTE is studying the use of Ozone to decrease Red Tide with this funding)

jduong916 said:
Is it really man made?

IMO Red Tide is a naturally occurring event that has been exacerbated by the excess nutrients from agriculture and septic tanks

Dennco2000 · Sep 14, 2018

Time machine LOL.... Yes red tide is a natural occurrence Capt Obvious but explain to me why the two most consistent areas for red tide and blue green algae outbreaks are Stuart and Jupiter including the lagoon area and SW FLA where the lake drains out? And we know for a fact the bottom of the lake is extremely toxic.

This is about 100 years of water mismanagement and layers upon layers of government entities and agencies, all with conflicting agendas, guidelines, standards and practices that they all hide behind to kick the proverbial can into the next election cycle without getting anything meaningful accomplished. This is the story of pollution coming from agriculture and the state subsidies and favoritism that allows it to continue.

Nelson and Scott both sought and received appropriated funding from the Senate to help local business? These are just loans that have to be paid back by the way LOL... (The Department of Economic Opportunity is providing bridge loans interest free for six months).

My final argument on this, if nothing else that filthy lake ruins the water clarity in SWFL we watch the news play the time laps videos of it creeping its way North every summer until it reaches my house near Stump Pass and beyond.

I feel much better now thanks.