Patchy red tide bloom continues in Anna Maria Island, Manatee County waters

Red tide is now showing up at bloom levels at both ends of Anna Maria Island, according to the latest samples from the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission.

Reports of dead fish and some respiratory irritation continue to roll in from beaches up and down the island. However, the bloom’s impact has remained patchy over the past week. Beach and water conditions have remained pleasant in many areas with crowds still out on the sand.

During a red tide bloom, beach conditions are known to change rapidly with shifts in the wind and tide.

Karenia brevis, the organism that causes the toxic bloom, was found at high levels in waters off of Bradenton Beach last week. The bloom’s presence remains strong at the south end of the island this week, according to samples collected on Monday near the 10th Street South pier and the South Coquina boat ramp.

At the northern tip of the island, a sample on Monday collected near the Rod and Reel Pier in Anna Maria contained a “medium” concentration of K. brevis. Last week, only “very low” concentrations of the algae had been collected in the area.

Dead fish and breathing irritation have affected Manatee and Coquina beaches over the last 72 hours, according to Mote Marine Laboratory’s beach conditions tracker, which is updated by lifeguards. The last report of red tide conditions on Gulf-side beaches at the northern end of the island came on Sunday, when dead fish were spotted in the sand in Anna Maria. However, no respiratory irritation was reported, and conditions were pleasant at Gulf and bay-side beaches that evening.

Elsewhere around Manatee County, red tide was detected at low levels in Palma Sola Bay and in the open waters of lower Tampa Bay south of the Sunshine Skyway Bridge. Medium and high levels of the algae that had persisted in the area of Bishop Harbor and the Terra Ceia Aquatic Preserve were not detected this week.

Red tide also continues to impact all 16 of Sarasota County’s public beaches, where dead fish continue to wash ashore, but conditions have not gotten bad enough to merit cleanup efforts, according to officials.

Bloom levels continue to be detected along both sides of Pinellas County’s coastline as the area experiences a massive fish and marine life kill.

Red tide forecasts

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the University of South Florida both produce red tide forecasts that predict the movements and severity of the blooms.

According to USF’s latest model, high levels of red tide are expected to continue affecting much of Anna Maria Island into the weekend. The high levels are predicted to linger around the Gulf and bay sides of the island near Bradenton Beach and Holmes Beach. At the north end of the island around Anna Maria, low to medium levels of the algae are expected to persist.

A four-day trajectory shows a bloom of the algae that was observed at the south of Anna Maria Island traveling northwest up the Gulf coast towards Holmes Beach over the next several says.

NOAA’s latest red tide forecast, released on Monday, predicted moderate levels of red tide lingering in Manatee County’s Gulf and bay regions throughout this week.