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August 12, 2019

Confirmed Algae Blooms in the South River!

Confirmed Algae Blooms in the South River!

Results came back from two samples collected on Wednesday, August 7th, when our South Riverkeeper saw a water clarity of less than only 1 foot at the mouth of the River!

The source of the extremely low water clarity came from a dinoflagellate bloom of Gyrodinium uncatenum (pictured below). Thankfully, this bloom is non-toxic.

That same day at the headwaters of the South River (near Flat Creek), we found a Eutreptia bloom, which can potentially produce toxic conditions for aquatic organisms.
Fortunately, this species of Eureptiales was confirmed to be non-toxic,  though it can cause large ecosystem impacts after the algae dies off.

Please shoot us a message if you start to see major discoloration in the water, and contact the MDH Envrionmental Helpline at 866-703-3266.