HRI Researchers Expand Harmful Algal Bloom Monitoring to Protect Human Health and the Oyster Industry

For many years, Texans learned about impending harmful algal blooms or HABs after negative impacts were already observed, such as fish kills.

Now, researchers at the Harte Research Institute at Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi are expanding a network of automated HAB detection sensors, known as Imaging FlowCytobots or IFCBs, to improve our ability to provide early warning of blooms so that state agencies responsible for protecting wildlife and humans can have ample time to respond.

Harmful algal blooms or HABs are a result of an overgrowth of algal species that can cause die-offs of coastal wildlife and habitat and can pose a threat to humans through toxin production. “Red tide” is a HAB that most Texans are familiar with. Devastating impacts to coastal tourism-based economies from HABs have been observed in the Gulf and elsewhere, and in Texas, HABs have potential to threaten our growing oyster farming industry.

This technology can save millions of dollars for coastal businesses, reduce potential health risks, and bridge data gaps on HABs that can inform future management measures.

“Both toxic and non-toxic HAB species occur along the Texas coast, and changing environmental conditions can create conditions more conducive for some HAB species,” said Dr. Laura Beecraft, an assistant research scientist at the Harte Research Institute. “Continuous monitoring can help us avoid human illness and economic losses from toxic blooms and understand environmental conditions that lead to HABs.”

IFCBs are deployed at strategic locations on the Texas coast, where they analyze water samples about every 30 minutes for HABs. Each water sample is run through an internal microscope that takes images of algae and uses artificial intelligence (AI) to identify the harmful species present in the water.

Currently, HRI manages IFCBs deployed at the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department facility in Port O’Connor and the Texas State Aquarium in Corpus Christi. Additional instruments are planned for deployment in 2026 at the Key Allegro Oyster Farm in Fulton along Aransas Bay and at the Texas AgriLife/TPWD Hatchery in Flour Bluff in the Upper Laguna Madre, expanding researchers’ ability to see and potentially predict HABs. When toxic species are detected, the information is sent to an email list coordinated by TPWD.

“Early detection of HABs helps state agencies by giving them the time and information needed to collect additional water samples to determine toxin levels and assess risk,” Beecraft said. “This means timely information to protect human health from direct exposure and consumption of contaminated seafood, as well as protect coastal businesses, for example, by avoiding harvesting during a bloom.”

HRI researchers, including in the institute’s Coastal and Marine Geospatial Sciences lab, are currently working on creating automated warnings that could be sent to agencies, including TPWD’s Spills and Kills Team and the Texas Department of State Health Services.

The deployment of IFCBs has opened new worlds in terms of studying HABs by giving researchers, resource managers, and governmental agencies the ability to spot early warning signs and act before small changes become big problems.

“It’s always great to help fill a need that helps the community and the environment — and early detection and monitoring of HABs provides that,” Beecraft said. “Our instruments are measuring phytoplankton, both harmful and benign species, some of which are not well documented in our waters. It opens new opportunities to measure what’s changing and try to understand why and what the effects might be.”