Video: Toxic red tide forces sharks to take refuge in Florida canal
Coastal shark species flee toxic red tide outbreak off southern Florida.
Several species of coastal shark, including lemon, black tip, bonnethead and nurse shark have taken refuge in a Florida canal, apparently in an effort to escape a toxic red tide caused by the alagae, Karenia brevis say experts.
“You just don’t normally see sharks piling up like that in these canals, they do go in there but not in the huge numbers that we’re seeing reported,” said Mark Heithaus, shark expert at Florida International University.
The algae has caused several toxic tides in recent years and marine biologists say this years bloom has been particularly bad, possibly made worse by a chemical spill from a fertiliser plant.
The Florida Fish and Wildlife Commission said it has received reports of fish kills in nine counties over the last week and several complaints of human respiratory distress in connection to the red tide.
