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10.0pt;font-family:Ari --Apple-Mail-31--927723147 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=WINDOWS-1252; format=flowed; delsp=yes Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable Hi Cindy, Small luminescent green specks of this sort are caused by =20 bioluminescent dinoflagellates such as Lingulodinium polyedrum. This =20 dinoflagellate does contain saxitoxin, one of the toxins associated =20 with PSP (Paralytic Shellfish Poisoning). "Red tides" are a colloquial name for marine algal blooms. =20 Dinoflagellates are important constituents of such blooms, as are =20 other types of phytoplankton such as diatoms and cyanobacteria. The =20 colour of these can be reddish (or not) and there is no real =20 association with tides, so "algal bloom" is a better term. "Red tides" =20= are often associated with dinoflagellates such as Karenia brevis and =20 Pfiesteria spp. which release potent neurotoxins called brevetoxins =20 which can kill fish, birds, marine mammals, and other organisms =20 (including people, if they ingest things like shellfish which have =20 accumulated the neurotoxins). In any event, although both phenomena have dinoflagellates in common, =20= they are not necessarily the same. The following pages all have useful =20= information. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Red_tide http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dinoflagellate http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bioluminescence http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Karenia_brevis = http://jrscience.wcp.muohio.edu/FieldCourses00/PapersMarineEcologyArticles= /WhatsGlowingintheWaterBio.html Cheers! Chris On 4-Aug-08, at 1:50 PM, Cindy Creighton wrote: > Hi All: > > Jeff and I were walking on Carter=92s Beach in Port Mouton at night on = =20 > Saturday night and we saw a very interesting sight =96 little =20 > luminescent green specks in the sand with the incoming tide. We saw =20= > them right at the water=92s edge, when a wave receded these things =20 > were left behind. We tried to pick some up to figure out what they =20= > were using a flashlight to go through the grains of sand, and all I =20= > could see was a little white thing that looked a piece of a shell, =20 > but it was very flat and elongated. Once disturbed by me shining =20 > the light on it and sorting through the sand with my finger it =20 > stopped glowing. I did a Google search to try and find out what =20 > they were and Red Tide kept coming up. Could this be a red tide? > > Shorebird question: > > I=92ve been going to Carter=92s Beach for years and there are Willets =20= > that breed there every year. When we were there in July, we saw the =20= > Willets and their fledglings feeding in the marsh behind the beach. =20= > This time, there was no sign of any of them. Would they have headed =20= > south already? Also, we didn=92t see any shorebirds of any type =20 > here. Why would shorebirds not be present on this beach? Do they =20 > follow certain migratory paths and Carter=92s Beach happens to be =20 > outside that path? Or maybe it=92s too early yet? > > As a side note, the birds we did see here were: > > Common Nighthawk > Common Terns > Great Black-backed Gulls > Herring Gulls > DC Cormorant > Song Sparrows > > Cheers, > Cindy > > No virus found in this outgoing message. > Checked by AVG. > Version: 7.5.524 / Virus Database: 270.5.6/1579 - Release Date: =20 > 7/29/2008 6:43 AM > Christopher Majka Nova Scotia Museum, 1747 Summer St., Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada B3H =20= 3A6 c.majka@ns.sympatico.ca --Apple-Mail-31--927723147 Content-Type: text/html; charset=WINDOWS-1252 Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable <html><body style=3D"word-wrap: break-word; -webkit-nbsp-mode: space; = -webkit-line-break: after-white-space; ">Hi = Cindy,<div><br></div><div>Small luminescent green specks of this sort = are caused by bioluminescent dinoflagellates such = as <i>Lingulodinium polyedrum</i>. This dinoflagellate does = contain saxitoxin, one of the toxins associated with PSP (Paralytic = Shellfish Poisoning). </div><div><br></div><div>"Red tides" = are a colloquial name for marine algal blooms. Dinoflagellates are = important constituents of such blooms, as are other types of = phytoplankton such as diatoms and cyanobacteria. The colour of these can = be reddish (or not) and there is no real association with tides, so = "algal bloom" is a better term. "Red tides" are = often associated with dinoflagellates such as <i>Karenia = brevis</i> and <i>Pfiesteria</i> spp. which release = potent neurotoxins called brevetoxins which can = kill fish, birds, marine mammals, and other organisms (including = people, if they ingest things like shellfish which have accumulated the = neurotoxins).</div><div><br></div><div>In any event, although both = phenomena have dinoflagellates in common, they are not necessarily the = same. The following pages all have useful = information.</div><div><br></div><div><a = href=3D"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Red_tide">http://en.wikipedia.org/wik= i/Red_tide</a></div><div><a = href=3D"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dinoflagellate">http://en.wikipedia.o= rg/wiki/Dinoflagellate</a></div><div><a = href=3D"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bioluminescence">http://en.wikipedia.= org/wiki/Bioluminescence</a></div><div><a = href=3D"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Karenia_brevis">http://en.wikipedia.o= rg/wiki/Karenia_brevis</a></div><div><div><a = href=3D"http://jrscience.wcp.muohio.edu/FieldCourses00/PapersMarineEcology= Articles/WhatsGlowingintheWaterBio.html">http://jrscience.wcp.muohio.edu/F= ieldCourses00/PapersMarineEcologyArticles/WhatsGlowingintheWaterBio.html</= a></div><div><br></div><div>Cheers!</div><div><br></div><div>Chris</div></= div><div><br><div><div>On 4-Aug-08, at 1:50 PM, Cindy Creighton = wrote:</div><br class=3D"Apple-interchange-newline"><blockquote = type=3D"cite"><span class=3D"Apple-style-span" style=3D"border-collapse: = separate; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: 'Times New Roman'; = font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: = normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; = text-align: auto; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: = normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-border-horizontal-spacing: = 0px; -webkit-border-vertical-spacing: 0px; = -webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: none; -webkit-text-size-adjust: = auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0; "><div lang=3D"EN-US" link=3D"blue" = vlink=3D"