Thinking of taking a trip to Florida? Then beware the sea air if you discover that there has been a recent “red tide”, a seasonal infestation of toxic algae notorious for killing marine life.
Richard Pierce and his colleagues at the Mote Marine Laboratory in Sarasota, Florida, have found that concentrations of brevetoxin 3, one of three neurotoxins produced by Karenia brevis – the major cause of red tides in Florida – can reach concentrations in the air 50 times as high as in the water itself. This might explain reports by beachgoers of dry coughs and streaming eyes during red tides.…
