Agencies in the island state are attempting to pinpoint a magenta ooze that has appeared on a remote shoreline, with a number of researchers worried it could be an phytoplankton proliferation.
The pink-tinged sludge materialized across a section of Randalls Bay about 37 miles south of the capital. A similar sludge has also been noted on parts of a nearby shore and a separate bay.
Specimens have been gathered and sent to the Environment Protection Authority for testing. A representative commented that "algal blooms are a normal phenomenon in response to changes in nutrients, temperature, rainfall or sunlight".
"These blooms are at times called red or pink tides because the outbreaks can change the water red," the spokesperson added. "Not all algal blooms are dangerous, with several kinds acting as a primary source of food for creatures in the marine food web."
"The usual source of reddish water in these seas is the marine phytoplankton Noctiluca scintillans, which can create glowing light shows at night."
Algae outbreaks are natural events but their rate has risen in recent times, partially due to environmental shifts and pollution that merge to create nutrient-rich waters primed for the quick expansion of dinoflagellates.
Dinoflagellates are a type of algae that typically act as the ocean's detritus consumers. During a proliferation, there is a rapid growth in their colonies that interferes with the normal functioning of marine environments.
These occurrences have been equated with underwater bushfires and can keep expanding as long as circumstances are favorable. In worse situations, delicate ocean habitats can be devastated as marine life is destroyed or deprived of oxygen, offering more minerals for the proliferation.
South Australia recently confronted a catastrophic phytoplankton proliferation along its southern coastline after a string of marine heatwaves, which extended across thousands of square kilometres. The bloom caused surfers with irritated eyes and hacking coughs and may have eliminated up to numerous aquatic species across numerous types, according to official estimates.
Faith Coleman, who was involved in studying the beginning of that outbreak said, based on images of the Tasmanian outbreak, the probable type involved was Noctiluca scintillans, a form of dinoflagellate also known as "ocean glitter".
"We have seen lots of these events around Tassie of late," she remarked.
Coleman said this organism did not create harmful substances like the species involved in South Australia's severe algal bloom, but it does eat tiny creatures and "many fish eggs", meaning fish and crustacean species were particularly vulnerable.
"It's common to observe a outbreak of this algae after a outbreak of a different species, or something like a salmon or coral spawning event," she said.
Lilly Henley, who collected samples of the pink sludge in Tasmania, said it seemed the potential proliferation had "increased notably" and proposed the aquaculture sector was the most likely culprit, pointing to like situations overseas.
"Thus we needs to send a strong warning here, the government and the environmental agency need to act to this. We need to analyse the examples we've taken and we need to inform the public here," she said.
Henley said she had concerns for public safety after experiencing a prickling feeling along her body while being sprayed with affected seawater.
An environmental foundation has reported dead octopus and deceased marine life being found on the beach, with a veteran activist describing the situation as an "natural disaster" and calling on the local leader to visit and "take control the effort that government must be making".
"The leader needs to know this is a crisis in the making, commercially as well as environmentally."
Speaking to reporters, the leader stated he was not aware of any connections between the algae outbreak and the salmon industry, saying laboratory analysis was necessary before judgments could be made.
"We must make certain our rivers and seas are safe for nature and long-lasting," he added.
"Our coastal assets across the state are our assets and we need to make sure the community and our industry can operate side-by-side to utilize our seas effectively and sustainably."
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