Possible Animal Effects
On June 22, 2006, a California brown pelican, possibly under the influence of domoic acid, flew through the windshield of a car on the Pacific Coast Highway. The phycotoxin is found in the local coastal waters.
Since March 2007, marine mammal and seabird strandings and deaths off the Southern California coast have increased markedly. These incidents have been linked to the recent and dramatic increase of a naturally occurring toxin produced by algae. Most of the animals found dead tested positive for domoic acid.
According to the Channel Islands Marine and Wildlife Institute (CIMWI), "It is generally accepted that the incidence of problems associated with toxic algae is increasing. Possible reasons to explain this increase include natural mechanisms of species dispersal (currents and tides) to a host of human-related phenomena such as nutrient enrichment (agricultural run-off), climate shifts or transport of algae species via ship ballast water."
Read more about this topic: Amnesic Shellfish Poisoning
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