Where did the brown tide come from? Is it always there?
Nobody knows where brown tide came from. Aureoumbra lagunensis, the alga responsible for brown tides, was not known before the 1989 Laguna Madre bloom. It seems to be unique to the Gulf of Mexico, though scientists are not sure of its origins. It is thought that brown tide concentrations might rise and fall as part of a natural cycle within the Laguna Madre, suggesting that the organism is present at all times in varying concentrations.
