Florida's red tide makes tourists ill and kills record numbers of mantees

Filed under: Travel News

A tide of toxic red algae is plaguing the Florida coast, causing tourists to become seriously ill and killing swathes of endangered mantees in record numbers.

People on the southwest coast around Fort Myers have reported respiratory problems after inhaling toxins released by the algae near red tides. They have also become ill after eating oysters and other shellfish which have absorbed the toxins.

Tourists and locals are being warned to be wary of waters with a deep reddish-brown hue off the gulf of Mexico.

Florida's Fish and Wildlife Research Institute reports that 241 mantees have so far been found dead - far more than the 151 that were found during the last red tide. And the death toll is expected to rise.

It is unclear why this year's algae bloom was so lengthy and toxic.



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