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UPDATED 17 June 2005:
Our moisture-laden May has affected more than farmers: it was a "perfect storm" that pumped above normal amounts freshwater into the Gulf of Maine, while at the same time blowing ocean waters into the Gulf. Along with those ocean waters came cysts of plankton species that are toxic to humans, and these species thrive in cool waters with lower salinity just like those in the Gulf right now. The resulting "bloom" of plankton can tinge the waters red from their shell color (hence the name "Red Tide"), and they become the primary food source for all shellfish in the region. The plankton don't harm the shellfish, but the shellfish themselves toxic to humans (as well as birds and mammals) until this specific plankton bloom subsides and the shellfish return to their normal diet. As a result, shellfish harvest is banned in most areas of the Maine Coast, all the way down to Cape Cod, and east out into federally monitored off-shore waters.
Red tide toxins have now reached their highest levels ever found in shellfish. That, and the continued spate of cool weather has caused some to forecast that the shellfish flats could remain closed for much of the summer! Meanwhile, the Red Tide has is moving further up the Maine coast to some of the few tidal flats that remained open: Cobbscook Bay is now closed to shellfish harvest, leaving only the area south of Moose River to the Cutler-Whiting area remained open for raking, but the warden quoted in the BDN news story linked above warned diggers to "check with local wardens before heading out."
The length and severity of the red tide closures have made shellfish consumers nervous and suspicious about eating any shellfish offered by restaurants or seafood merchants, even though only shellfish harvested from areas that test negative for the toxins are allowed to be sold.
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