Florida red tide prompts cleanup of dead fish from Gulf Coast beaches: reports

Scores of dead fish were being cleaned up from beaches in Pinellas County, Florida, this week, the result of "red tide" conditions in the area, according to a report.

Pinellas County, with a population of nearly 1 million people, lies just west of Tampa on Florida’s Gulf Coast and includes communities such as Clearwater and St. Petersburg. The area has seen a period of "red tide," a natural occurrence in which algal blooms discolor the water and lead to a high presence of microorganisms, resulting in fish kills. Red tide can often affect the quality of shellfish that humans may consume afterward, resulting in a risk of illness.