In the last 2 months, thousands of fish have died or become sick in the tributaries of Chesapeake Bay which resembles a pattern of devastation in the North Carolina estuaries where a billion or more crabs, fish and menhaden have been killed. The toxins are microscopic in nature and are classified as algae even though they are not wholly bacterial, animal nor plant. Pfiesteria is an organism that has attracted the attention of scientists only this decade. Traditionally these organisms have been called algae or plankton, specifically phytoplankton. When reproduction occurs, large populations emerge, they have been called tides or blooms.
Dinoflagellates play an important part in aquatic ecosystems by providing food for other organisms.
However, it emerges into a killer of animals by changing its eating habits by whatever host is around at the time. Pfiesteria feed upon fish by emitting one compound that kills the fish and one that opens up the fish s skin allowing it to feed on the tissue inside. Pfiesteria is very tedious to recognize due to the amount of steps and views taken to identify the organism. There are only a handful of researchers qualified to be experts in recognizing the cells of Pfiesteria making the process and arduous job. Red Tides Red tides behave more like plants.