Beauty may be in the eye of the beholder, but the stink of decaying ocean life is in all our noses this week as the algae that turned local waves neon blue are now dying off in huge numbers.
Local waters have recently experienced a “red tide” caused by a massive bloom of algae. The tiny organisms have a reddish brown color during daylight hours but when agitated at night, they emit a blue bioluminescence that causes waves to glow. The same species bloomed along local shores in 2020 and as happened last year, the aftermath of the light show is a stinker.
As the algae die, bacteria break them down causing the smell that is noticeable throughout town. The decomposition process also sucks oxygen out of the water and the process can create localized dead zones that pose a danger to any fish trapped in the now unbreathable water.
“It was a pretty massive bloom up and down the coast so it may last a matter of days to a week or so,” said Laura Rink, Associate Director of Operations at the Heal the Bay Aquarium. “With the current winds and currents, hopefully it sweeps it away.”
Rink said the Aquarium is right at sea level meaning they are currently overwhelmed by the smell and while it is unpleasant, it’s actually pretty safe.
“Toxicity is very species specific and this particular species has generally been considered nontoxic so we shouldn’t be concerned in that regard but we always tell people to err on the side of caution.”
Unlike last year’s bloom, she said there haven’t been any reports of dangers to other wildlife or concerns that filter animals like shellfish will become unsafe due to the conditions.
Rink said blooms occur all the time but unless they catch the attention of humans, we often don’t hear about it. Some species, like the algae that bloomed last year, are in fact toxic and can cause huge environmental damage such as the large number of sick sea lions that washed ashore in 2023.
While non-toxic, the oxygen depletion can be a serious impact creating floating dead zones or potentially fish kills as happened several years ago in the Marina.
“Certainly there are often blooms brought on by warming water and as we see global temperatures rise and water temperatures rise, it implies we’re going to see more of these algae blooms and that could cause issues if the species is toxic or just due to the oxygen depletion.”
She said there’s no easy way to predict which species of algae will bloom on any given year as it depends on the particular combination of ocean currents, temperatures and nutrients.
“Aside from warming waters, there’s also pollution and nutrient runoff so we should be mindful of our direct effect on ocean pollution influencing these events and continue to analyze our inputs into the ocean,” she said.
The recent glowing algae have proven popular among visitors and the Aquarium is hoping to make them a regular feature. They have gathered samples from the most recent bloom and are using a new aquaculture lab at the facility to hopefully turn them into an ongoing exhibit.
The museum itself is open Wednesday through Sunday from 12–4pm at 1600 Ocean Front Walk. The facility has a variety of permanent and rotating exhibits. For tickets or more information on aquarium programming, visit healthebay.org/aquarium.
matt@smdp.com
