Mote deployment during red tide outbreak

Sarasota-based Mote Marine Laboratory and partners in mid-February conducted what the nonprofit described as “the first-ever field test deployment of two Florida Red Tide Mitigation and Technology Development Initiative products and technologies to an active red tide bloom.” Mote’s CLEAR and Heartland Energy Group’s Xtreme were deployed by scientists in Venic canals during an active bloom in Venice. Post-deployment analysis found “significant reductions of K. brevis cells, as expected based on years of successful large-scale multi-species mesocosm laboratory testing,” according to Mote. Mote president and CEO Michael P. Crosby said, “We are transitioning from controlled laboratory studies and field testing of real-world red tide bloom applications to the next critical phase of this initiative, which focuses on engineering large-scale deployment technologies required to safely and effectively mitigate the impacts of harmful algal blooms in our coastal waters.” Islander Photo: Courtesy Mote Marine

Kathy Porter Shapell took this photograph of dead fish Feb. 16 near Willow Avenue in Anna Maria. Islander Photos: Courtesy via Facebook

Kim McCormick walked along Anna Maria Island’s shore Feb. 17 and found many dead fish. She wrote on Facebook: “The tide was starting to come in as we neared Bean Point. So, I imagine that may have washed a number of them out into the Gulf.