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A harmful algal bloom known as a \u201cred tide\u201d has been spreading since July in San Francisco Bay and its surrounding waters. As water temperatures have risen in late summer, the red tide has reached a toxic level and is killing unprecedented numbers of fish and other marine life, on-site experts say.<\/p>\n
USA Today<\/a> reports that large numbers of white sturgeon, striped bass, rays, and crabs have died in San Francisco Bay. The fish kill has been particularly bad in Lake Merritt, a tidal lagoon on the east shore of the bay near Oakland.<\/p>\n These algal blooms that marine biologists refer to as \u201cred tides\u201d occur naturally during times of extreme heat, but they are exacerbated by environmental degradation and water quality issues. The red tide currently affecting the San Francisco Bay area is caused by a microorganism called Heterosigma akashiwo<\/a><\/em>, according to USA Today. <\/p>\n \u201cThis species [of algae] is associated with massive fish kills elsewhere,\u201d fishery ecologist Jon Rosenfield, who works with San Francisco Baykeeper<\/a>, told the Stockton Record. \u201cIt is unknown whether the bloom is causing a drop in dissolved oxygen, or producing a toxin that kills fish, or both.\u201d<\/p>\n Either way, the result is that rotting fish carcasses are fouling the bay\u2019s shorelines and creating an environmental health hazard\u2014not to mention the putrid smells released by decomposing fish. Bay Area experts are also worried that the situation could worsen, as there is yet another heatwave in the forecast.<\/p>\n