On May 7th, Captain Jim Brincefield of Deale, MD, arrived back at his boat slip on Rockhold Creek after a day of rockfish fishing on the Bay to find the biggest algal bloom he said he has ever seen. The water sample he collected and provided to Maryland DNR was dominated by the mahogany tide dinoflagellate, Prorocentrum minimum. The density of the sample was 218,000 cells/milliliter and ranks as one of the top five highest concentrations of Prorocentrum recorded in Maryland waters over the last 20 years. Visit Maryland DNR's Eyes on the Bay HAB webpage for tracking the location of this and other algal blooms.

The water temperatures in Chesapeake Bay have consistently been well behind average temperatures since 1985 and setting record low temperatures at some long term monitoring stations during late winter and early spring months (see Main Bay station (CB3.3C) and Mid-Bay (CB4.2C). Also see more water quality data at Maryland DNR's website Eyes on the Bay). The cooler temperatures this spring appear to have delayed the onset of Mahogany Tide bloom conditions over broader regions of Chesapeake Bay so far this year.