Driving or boating in the Sea to Sky and the big redish circles in Howe Sound appear shocking.
The Chief has received calls of concern that the red blobs are a fuel spill of some kind, but they aren’t.
It is even safe to swim through them.
They are a naturally occurring, and quite common, phenomenon — a Noctiluca scintillans bloom.
“Noctiluca is a non-toxic species of algae,” said Elysha Gordon, Canadian Shellfish Sanitation Program Coordinator for Department of Fisheries and Oceans. “[It] does not hurt humans if they swim in this bloom.”
And it is not “red tide.”
Red tide usually refers to harmful or toxic algae blooms. Such blooms include the algae that cause paralytic shellfish poisoning, which is relatively common along the B.C. coast. When bivalves — mussels, oysters, and clams — ingest the algae, and then humans consume the shellfish, the toxins can cause severe and potentially fatal neurological illness.
Because various blooms often happen at the same time, many think red tide is — well — red. But it isn’t. It is colourless.
So, while it isn’t pretty, the redish blooms in Howe Sound aren't dangerous.
For more information on red tides, go to For more information, go to https://bit.ly/2kXmLZu.
— With files from the Bowen Island Undercurrent
