Red tide clings to Southwest Florida coastline

MANATEE -- A bloom of the Florida red tide organism, Karenia brevis, persists along Pinellas, Manatee, Sarasota, Charlotte, and northern Lee counties in Southwest Florida, according to the Florida Wildlife Commission.

One sample collected from Okaloosa County in Northwest Florida contained background concentrations of K. brevis.

No fish kills were reported in Southwest Florida over the past week.

Forecasts for Southwest Florida by the USF-FWC Collaboration for Prediction of Red Tides show net southern movement of surface waters and southern onshore movement of bottom waters between Pinellas and Lee counties over the next three days.

This story was originally published April 29, 2016 at 12:00 AM with the headline "Red tide clings to Southwest Florida coastline ."