Sharks Move Into Longboat Key Canals To Avoid Red Tide: Report

LONGBOAT KEY, FL — To get away from red tide, which continues to affect Sarasota and Manatee counties, sharks that normally live in Sarasota Bay are moving into the canals of Longboat Key.

After residents reached out to Mote Marine Lab and Aquarium, researchers found hundreds of sharks swimming in the canals, the Observer reported.

Jack Morris, a senior biologist in Mote’s Sharks and Rays Research Program, said he’s seen four shark species — blacktip, bonnethead, lemon and nurse — swimming in Buttonwood Harbor, Crane’s Bayou and other canals on the east side of Longboat Key, reports said.

The sharks don’t normally swim into these areas because there isn’t much food for them, Morris said. But it’s a better alternative to swimming where there is an elevated presence of red tide, which decreases the oxygen in the water and could kill them.

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“It's not the optimal conditions for those sharks, but in the presence of red tide, that's probably the only safe place for them right now,” he said.

Bob Hueter, chief scientist for Ocearch Shark Tracker, told WTSP that because sharks are more mobile than other fish, they’re able to swim away faster when they detect a red tide bloom. This leads to them swimming into canals and back bays to get away from red tide, he said.

"It's very unusual. It's nothing the animals want to do. But, it's temporary too," Hueter said.

He said when red tide disperses, the sharks will move back to their regular areas.