Sarasota Bay Watch scallop search postponed

The Sarasota Bay Watch’s Great Scallop Search of 2018 and Clam Jam scheduled for Saturday, Aug. 25 has been postponed because of red tide.

On Tuesday, Sarasota Bay Watch Programming Director Ronda Ryan flew over Sarasota Bay and said conditions were poor, and they decided they did not want volunteers to have to go in the water.

Even though hardshell clams are resistant to red tide, the Bay Watch will wait to put the clams in the bay.

Ryan said that various bay watch programs up the southwestern Florida coast have canceled their searches this weekend as well.

“As soon as this red tide is clear, we’ll be back in the water,” she said.

This summer, the Sarasota Bay Watch is working to release 60,000 juvenile clams and 215,000 adult clams into the bay. When the Scallop Search and Clam Jam happen, volunteers will aid in the distribution of 30,000 of those clams.

The Bay Watch’s dinner fundraiser  “Scallopalooza, It’s Clamtastic!” on Sept. 22 at the Sarasota Yacht Club is still happening as planned.

A rescheduled scallop search will be announced at a later date.