SAN DIEGO (FOX 5/KUSI) — Scientists at UC San Diego’s Scripps Institution of Oceanography have identified a microscopic “ruthless predator” that could reshape how researchers understand Southern California’s glowing red tides.
In a study published last month in the Journal of Phycology, researchers examined Polykrikos kofoidii, a little-known species of plankton that hunts and consumes other plankton — including the toxic, bloom-forming organism responsible for red tide events.
Red tides occur when certain dinoflagellates rapidly multiply, creating dense blooms that can discolor ocean water and, at times, produce the bioluminescent waves seen along San Diego County beaches. One of the most common species behind these displays is Lingulaulax polyedra, which emits a bright blue glow when disturbed.
But scientists say that the species is not without predators…