red tide
American Heritage Dictionary:
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red tide
n.
A bloom of dinoflagellates that causes reddish discoloration of coastal ocean waters. Certain dinoflagellates of the genus Gonyamlax produce toxins that kill fish and contaminate shellfish.
Britannica Concise Encyclopedia:
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red tide
Discoloration of seawater caused by dinoflagellates during periodic blooms (population increases). Toxic substances released by these organisms into the water may be lethal to fish and other marine life, and they irritate the human respiratory system. Coastal resorts sometimes close when breaking waves release the toxic substances into the air. The causes of red tide are uncertain; it may require the confluence of several natural phenomena, in which human influence may or may not play a part.
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Oxford Food & Nutrition Dictionary:
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red tide
Sudden, unexplained increase in numbers of toxic organisms (dinoflagellates) in the sea which cause fish and shellfish feeding on them to become toxic.
Biology Q&A:
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What is a red tide?
A red tide occurs when there is a population explosion among toxic
red dinoflagellates (members of the genera Gymnodidium and Gonyaulax, both
protistans that have an unusual cellular plate or armor). The population
explosion, referred to a as a "bloom," may tint the water orange, red, or brown
and can be toxic to shellfish, birds, and humans who eat red
tide-contaminated food.
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Oxford Dictionary of Biochemistry:
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red tide
a bloom of the dinoflagellate Ptychodicus brevis (Gymnopodium breve), an organism that produces brevetoxins and causes epidemics of food poisoning.
| red shift, red muscle, red drop | |
| redistil, redox, redox balance |
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categories related to 'red tide'
- Environment, Ecology, and Animal Behavior - red tide: overabundance of dinoflagellate protozoans in usu. subtropical marine waters, turning them reddish-brown and producing a fish-killing toxin
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Copyrights:
American Heritage Dictionary
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2007, 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Updated in 2009. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Britannica Concise Encyclopedia
Britannica Concise Encyclopedia. © 1994-2012 Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. All rights reserved. Read more
Oxford Food & Nutrition Dictionary
A Dictionary of Food and Nutrition. Copyright © 1995, 2003, 2005 by A. E. Bender and D. A. Bender. All rights reserved.
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Biology Q&A
The Handy Biology Answer Book. 2004 ©Visible Ink Press (handyanswers.com). All rights reserved.
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Oxford Dictionary of Biochemistry
Oxford University Press. Oxford Dictionary of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology © 1997, 2000, 2006 All rights reserved.
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