Harmful Algal Information System: Event US-93-011

General Information

Event name:	US-93-011
Country:	UNITED STATES
Nature of the harmful event:	Seafood toxins
Event directly affected:
Toxicity detected:	Yes (Approximate range: 4,012 痢 STXeq / 100 g. in blue mussels.)
Associated syndrome:	PSP
Unexplained toxicity:	No
Species implicated in toxin transmission (transvector):
Report the outcome of a monitoring programme:	Yes
Event occurred before in this location:	Yes (Annually in Puget Sound. Occasionally in coastal zone.)
Individuals to contact:	McCALLUM, Mary

Location & Date

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Location:	Latitude: , Longitude:
General location information:	Puget Sound and surf zone of coastal beaches, Washington. HAB Area code(s): US-23 US-24
Additional location information:	PSP occurred at various localities around Puget Sound and in the surf zone of coastal beaches.
Bloom event dates (yyyy/mm/dd):
Quarantine levels dates (yyyy/mm/dd):
Additional date-related information:	June - October in Puget Sound. March through summer in the coastal surf zone.

Microalgae

Causative organism known:	Yes
Causative Species/Genus:	Alexandrium catenella ( cells/L)
Co-Ocurring Species/Genus:
Chlorophyll concentration, if known:	µg/l
Additional bloom information:
Event-related bibliography:

Environmental Conditions

Weather:		Turbidity (NTU):	Wind direction:
Stratified water:	No	Oxygen content (nL/L):	Wind velocity:
Temperature (°C):		Oxygen saturation %:	Current Direction:
Sechhi disk (m):		Salinity:	Current Velocity:	0

Nutrient information:

Temperature Range During Event:

Max: °C, Min: °C

Salinity Range During Event:

Bloom location in the water column:

Growth:

In situ

Growth Comments

Puget Sound: in situ. Coastal area: ??

Additional Environmental information:

Estuarine/inland waters/protected embayments in Puget Sound Coastal surf zone.

Toxin Assay Information

Species containing the toxin	Toxin type	Toxin details	Max. concentration	Assay type
Blue mussel	Saxitoxins	STX eq	4,012	Bioassay-Mouse
Razor clams (edible tissue)	Saxitoxins	STX eq	180	Bioassay-Mouse

Kit used: No

Type of kit used:

Additional information:

Economic losses:

Management decision:

In Puget Sound, there were short-term closures of some commercial growing areas and advisory closures for recreational shellfish harvest. In the coastal area, there was a partial closure of the recreational razor clam fishery.

Additional harmful effect information:

Shellfish toxicity exceeded closure level of 80 痢/100 g.