South Australia’s coastline has been hit with a toxic algae that has killed more than 200 marine species.
According to BBC, the algal bloom, which means a rapid increase in the algae population in water, has been spreading off the Australian coast since March, growing to about 4,500 sq km (3,400 sq miles) or estimatedly around the size of nearby Kangaroo Island.
The weeks of toxic algae explosion that conservationists have described as "a horror movie for fish" has killed a large number of marine species, including sharks and octopuses.
Vanessa Pirotta, a wildlife scientist, “It's an unprecedented event, because the bloom has continued to build and build.”
Scientists explained that algae produce "act like a toxic blanket that suffocates" a wide range of marine life.
A horror movie for fish
Brad Martin, SA project manager for a non-profit organisation OzFish that protects fishing habitat, explained that although algal blooms are not rare, the “massive” scale of the recent event has created a dramatic impact on marine life.
He said, “It can suffocate fish from their gills, cause haemorrhaging by attacking their red blood cells, and act as a neurotoxin and attack the fish’s nervous system and brain, causing unusual behaviour."
"This is why some fish and sharks are acting so strangely and why many of the dead have a red tinge, it is like a horror movie for fish,” Martin added.
As per OzFish analysis of 1,400 citizen scientist reports, nearly half (47%) of the species killed in the algal bloom were ray-finned fish, and a quarter (26%) were sharks and rays. Cephalopods, such as squid, cuttlefish and octopuses, were 7%, while decapods, crabs, lobsters and prawns made up 6% of the dead species.
