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Also in this year we are witnessing the now common and usual phenomenon of the inflorescence of marine mucilage along the coasts of our sea. At the same time as the mucilage, however, an excessive proliferation of the microalgae Ostreopsis cf. Ovata. Qhese two phenomena should not be connected or at least should not occur at the same time so frequently. Mucillagine e Alga tossica Ostreopsis ovata intotheblue.it
Mucillagine e Alga tossica Ostreopsis ovata – intotheblue.it
The fact is that the Mucilage appeared in about 4/5 days and is now detaching from the surface of the seabed where it is present. However, along the coast of Livorno, this toxic algae is also growing together with the mucilage: Ostreopsis cf. Ovata.
Ostreopsis ovata a microscopic unicellular alga (dinoflagellate group) that commonly lives in the warm waters of tropical seas on the surface of red and brown algae but has also found optimal climatic conditions for its development in the waters of the Mediterranean Sea, including many Italian coastal areas characterized by coasts and seabeds with a predominantly rocky nature. Since 1998 it has also appeared in Tuscany …
The proliferation of the microalga Ostreopsis cf. Ovata in our latitudes is essentially linked to climatic factors such as:
- stable weather-marine conditions (high atmospheric pressure);
- reduced wave motion (presence of natural or artificial reefs);
- relatively high water temperature.
The characteristic signs of the massive bloom phenomenon can sometimes be observed with the naked eye:
- underwater formation of a brownish film with a membranous and gelatinous appearance on rocks and everything on the bottom;presence of brownish aggregates (flakes and/or filaments) with a gelatinous consistency in suspension; on the surface these aggregates can sometimes appear as reddish-brown foams;
- sometimes opalescence of the water.
- During the bloom the presence of algal cells, their fragments or materials, in addition to water, can be found in the aerosol and on the shoreline following storm surges, increasing the opportunities for contact with people.
In the Mediterranean, the increase in the proliferation of Ostreopsis cf. ovata along the coasts – especially Spanish, French and Italian – has been sporadically accompanied by reports of effects on health, following inhalation/direct contact.
Among these, a flu-like, feverish-respiratory syndrome prevails, associated or not with dermatitis or conjunctivitis.
The three routes of exposure to O. cf. ovata. , cutaneous, inhalative and oral, affect both recreational use of water (swimmers, athletes, amateur fishermen) and professional activities (lifeguards, tour operators, fishermen, operators involved in coastal marine monitoring activities.
https://www.arpat.toscana.it/temi-ambientali/acqua/balneazione/ostreopsis-ovata
Mucillage and Toxic algae Ostreopsis ovata – intotheblue.it
In this period the surface temperature (unfortunately up to and beyond 10 meters deep) of the sea is too high, our dive computers often record temperatures of 27° – 28°, but also 29° – 30°C and it is now evident that the proliferation of jellyfish and the presence of these algae are an inevitable consequence.
We have already documented and filmed these phenomena but the thing that worries us more and more is that this is a more or less constant annual event. Every summer we witness these phenomena that should alarm us regarding an increasingly necessary change of direction towards a sustainable development of our Sea and our Planet.
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