COSEE Ocean Systems: News
Like Weeds of the Sea, 'Brown Tide' Algae Exploit Nutrient-Rich Coastlines
Description: The sea-grass beds of Long Island's Great South Bay once teemed with shellfish. Clams, scallops and oysters filtered nutrients from the water and flushed money through the local economy. But three decades after the algae that cause brown tides first appeared here, much of the sea grass and the bounty it used to provide is gone. Spring on eastern Long Island is now marked by dense blooms of Aureococcus anophagefferens, which turn estuaries like Great South Bay the color of mud and crowd out native sea grass and stunt or poison shellfish. [Source: Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory (Columbia University)]
URL: http://www.ldeo.columbia.edu/news-events/weeds-sea-brown-tide-algae-exploit-nutrient-rich-coastlines
Availability: Full Text
Source: Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory (Columbia University)
Publish Date: 9/5/2014
Reading Level: Basic
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