TAMPA, Fla. — Florida Fish and Wildlife says red tide has shown up in samples taken off the west coast of Florida. A new bloom of the red tide organism, Karenia brevis, was observed in Southwest Florida over the past week in Sarasota, Charlotte, Lee, and Collier counties.
According to FWC, over the past week, there are low concentrations of red tide in the waters off Pinellas County.
Background to medium concentrations were observed in Sarasota County (more than 100,000 cells per liter), and there are very low to medium concentrations in Charlotte County.
It's a lot worse off the coast of Lee and Collier Counties, where water tests came back with high concentrations (more than one million cells per liter). There are also reports of fish kills there.
If you see dead fish -- and suspect red tide -- you can report it directly to FWC on the agency's website. That's also where you can report any health effects to people.
Updated bloom maps are also available here:
The next status report will be issued on Friday, November 1st.
