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Thursday, September 25, 1997
Red tide blamed for fish kill in Gulf of Mexico
SAN JOSE ISLAND, Texas (AP) -- A bloom of red tide algae is
being blamed for the deaths of millions of fish along the Gulf
of Mexico, including 2 million menhaden found this week on a six-mile
stretch of San Jose Island.
Red tide is a microscopic algae that attacks the nervous systems
of fish and creates a reddish tint in seawater. Eating infected
fish can cause stomach cramps and diarrhea in humans, and airborne
toxins can cause watery eyes and breathing discomfort.
State scientists on Tuesday found millions of dead menhaden
on San Jose Island, just northeast of Aransas Pass, that they
believe were infected by red tide.
"We've got verification that we had red tide cells in
the water (off San Jose Island), and some of the people out there
were feeling discomfort with coughing," said Larry McEachron,
science director for Coastal Fisheries Division of the Texas Parks
and Wildlife Department.
State officials said they also suspect that red tide killed
thousands of the small menhaden fish at Sargent Beach on the Matagorda
Peninsula last week.
The red tide algae bloomed last week near Port O'Connor where
a smaller fish kill was discovered near Pass Cavallo.
Tony Amos, an oceanographer at the University of Texas Marine
Science Center in Port Aransas, said little is known about what
triggers a bloom of red tide. Favorable conditions include warmer
than usual water of low salinity, Amos said.
Officials hope the red tide won't spread into the state's coastal
bays, but scientists are pessimistic.
A red tide bloom in September 1996 forced the health department
to delay oyster harvests for about three months in every coastal
bay south of East Matagorda Bay, said R.J. Shelley, a state health
department environmental quality specialist in Port Lavaca. The
oyster harvest is scheduled to begin Nov. 1.
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Copyright ©1997,
Abilene Reporter-News / Texnews / E.W. Scripps Publications
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