Whereas “normalcy” and sweetness steadily return to the seashores of the Mexican Caribbean, the coasts of Puerto Rico, the Lesser Antilles, and the Dominican Republic seeing their worst sargassum days.
In keeping with hydrobiologist Esteban Amaro, director of the Sargassum Monitoring Network of Quintana Roo, final month it was reported that a big mass of sargassum was drifting north, and at present, a month later (July 15), the pattern has been confirmed.
As of at present, “sargassum is on its approach to the Lesser and Larger Antilles. Additionally it is massively impacting Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic coasts,” he mentioned.
This interprets into the Mexican Caribbean having a sargassum-free summer. The identical phenomenon was noticed final yr when sargassum moved away from the Mexican coasts as summer season approached.
It’s not magic. That occurs as a result of rising temperatures modify ocean currents, specialists say.
“We received’t have sargassum a minimum of till the top of the yr. Which means we received’t see sargassum for one more six or seven months. It’s doable, nevertheless, that we are going to have an early arrival in 2025 round January or February with a peak in April or Might,” the professional forecasted.
The College of South Florida experiences comparable observations.
In keeping with satellite tv for pc pictures revealed by this establishment, the realm surrounding the Lesser Antilles has skilled a rise in sargassum in the previous couple of weeks.
“Though slight will increase within the sargassum quantity have been discovered within the jap Caribbean Sea, the western Caribbean Sea skilled a major discount in sargassum.”
“The sargassum quantity decreased in June, with probably the most relative discount within the western Caribbean Sea and jap Atlantic. Whole sargassum quantity in all areas mixed elevated barely to 10.5 million metric tons, exceeding the 75 percentile of historic ranges for June,” reads the official monitoring web site.
In the meanwhile, the seaweed situation in the Dominican Republic shouldn’t be trying good.
In keeping with members of our FB group, Dominican Republic Sargassum Seaweed Report, most seashores on this nation are at the moment buried underneath tons of sargassum.
“I’ve been within the Bavaro (El Cortecito) space since Thursday and have walked a minimum of just a few miles up and down the coast from my space — it’s been fairly exhausting to search out patches of the ocean that aren’t crammed with carpets of sargassum (water has been black and thick with the grass in these areas), or with a thick pile of it on the seaside as nicely,” reported an nameless commenter on June 22. They make clear that there are certainly a “few patches” the place you may swim.
When visiting the favored seaside of Gran Bávaro, Chantale R. discovered an identical panorama.
“Right this moment on the Grand Bávaro Princess [there was] sargassum throughout. Carpets and carpets of sargassum. Not swimmable. Hope tomorrow shall be higher,” mentioned the beachgoer on June 22.
The 2024 sargassum season has been significantly harsh within the Mexican Caribbean in the course of the first months of the yr. Different locations affected by sargassum invasions have included Jamaica, the Dominican Republic and Florida to a lesser extent.
Though it’s doable to look at a giant blob of algae heading for the Dominican Republic, the College of South Florida forecasts that landfalls ought to cut back over the following few months.
“Sargassum flooding in almost all areas will enhance within the coming months,” they concluded.
