The red tide organism, Karenia brevis, was detected at background concentrations in a single sample from St. Johns County along Florida’s East Coast over the past week, according to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC).
State wildlife officials reported that the organism was not observed in any samples taken from Southwest or Northwest Florida during the same period.
No fish kills or instances of respiratory irritation suspected to be linked to red tide were reported to the FWC Fish Kill Hotline or its partners over the last seven days.
The FWC stated that it continues to monitor nearshore and offshore conditions using satellite imagery from the University of South Florida (USF) and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s National Centers for Coastal Ocean Science (NOAA NCCOS).
According to short-term, 3.5-day forecasts from the USF-FWC Collaboration for Prediction of Red Tides, surface and subsurface waters from Pinellas to northern Monroe counties are predicted to move in a net southern to southeastern direction.
The agency announced it will issue its next status report on Friday, July 24.
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