It has been fifteen months since a devastating red tide poisoned the waters around Longboat Key, Florida. Having returned three days ago, I have observed promising signs of recovery but the ecosystem is not yet back to full health.
The number of brown pelicans and double-crested cormorants fishing on Sarasota Bay have increased dramatically but the populations of ospreys, waders, gulls and terns have not yet returned to pre-tide levels. We did encounter a pod of dolphins in the Gulf but, at least to date, their numbers seem to be relatively low.
These observations, purely my own, may not hold up to scientific scrutiny but I suspect that effects of the red tide persist; of course, natural ecosystems evolve over long periods of time, too slow for the impatience of humans. Hopefully, the recovery will gradually continue before another insult, perhaps fueled by global warming and seawater pollution, threatens this subtropical paradise.
See: Encountering the Red Tide and Benefits from a Red Tide?
The number of brown pelicans and double-crested cormorants fishing on Sarasota Bay have increased dramatically but the populations of ospreys, waders, gulls and terns have not yet returned to pre-tide levels. We did encounter a pod of dolphins in the Gulf but, at least to date, their numbers seem to be relatively low.
These observations, purely my own, may not hold up to scientific scrutiny but I suspect that effects of the red tide persist; of course, natural ecosystems evolve over long periods of time, too slow for the impatience of humans. Hopefully, the recovery will gradually continue before another insult, perhaps fueled by global warming and seawater pollution, threatens this subtropical paradise.
See: Encountering the Red Tide and Benefits from a Red Tide?
