By ANNE BESTON
A gooey pink jelly in the Hauraki Gulf is a non-toxic algal bloom that causes the sea to glow at night.
The jelly slick now stretches from Waiheke Island up the eastern coast to Leigh Harbour where, because of its density, it has suffocated some fish.
Auckland University marine
biologist Dr Russ Babcock, of Goat Island marine reserve, said the sole problem was the bloom's impact on scuba diving.
"It's very scungy and yukky out there," he said.
The phosphorescent waves caused by the bloom had been a spectacular sight at night.
The gooey slick is about one nautical mile north of Onetangi Beach, on Waiheke's northern side, and well off-shore, said Auckland Regional Council pollution officer Eddie Grogan. "It's slopping around out there. It's really just a case of monitoring it and getting final confirmation of what it is."
The council had asked a North Shore Helicopters crew doing water sampling for Auckland City Council to make a special trip to get a sample of the jelly.
Initial tests of the lumpy pink sample showed it was probably the non-toxic Noctiluca scintillens, a common algal bloom around Auckland in summer.
Mr Grogan said the toxic bloom had dropped back to low levels but monitoring and sampling would continue.
Herald feature: Environment
