Dr. Cliff Ross of UNF’s Department of Biology and colleagues from other universities have recently discovered effects of red tide on native Florida species like coral, according to a UNF press release.

Red tide is a toxic algal bloom that has been known to kill marine life and even land-dwelling animals who drink from water during a blooming event, as well as cause illness in people who are near the blooms. Red tide is also a major sore spot for the tourism industry on Florida’s Gulf coast, according to reporting by the Washington Post.

Though red tide has become the common term, those studying the phenomenon prefer to call the the blooms “harmful algal blooms,” according to the National Ocean Service. The specific algae is known as Karenia brevis, or K. brevis.

In their study, Dr. Ross and his colleagues looked at how red tide effects corals, providing new insight into the stresses placed on reef-building corals with the exposure of red tide. The study found that corals exposed to red tide showed signs of protein changes, demonstrating cell stress.

The full study can be accessed here.

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