Test results show the bloom was almost certainly to blame for mass deaths of kina as well as crayfish, starfish and sea cucumber which washed ashore at Hardinge Rd, including Sandy Beach, and on a small part of Westshore Beach eight days ago.
Previously, regulators monitored the presence of certain toxins and shut down fishing when they exceeded safe limits.
Otago University's Marine Science Professor Steve King said the summer stranding is nothing to be alarmed about. "It's a natural cycle of the pelagic food where climate change is happening but it is mostly manifested in the warm water conditions we are seeing right now."
New data show the population of baby lobsters off New England is below average, raising concerns about the size of future commercial hauls of the valuable crustaceans as waters warm.
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