Red Tide Dinoflagellates

Description:

You could see ribbons of it in the water going off into the horizon. I had never seen it so clearly before. This dinoflagellate causes red tide and paralytic shellfish poisoning (PSP), the reason people cannot eat shellfish found in the shallow waters near town. In some cases PSP can be fatal. It does not have much of an effect on fish, but rather on shellfish because shellfish are filter feeders and retain the toxins, and long-term buildup means more concentrated toxins.

Habitat:

A couple miles offshore

Notes:

I photographed some Red-necked Phalaropes gathering in the red tide. I'm not sure why or if it was incidental