It's enough to make your beach day less than perfect.
Sunday afternoon, Chris Whittaker went to Holmes Beach to surf when he saw dead fish.
"The wind was onshore, so as soon as you walked out onto the beach, you could smell it right away kind of before I even got out there, and then walking out there, just saw a very large area of fish that kind of built up on the beach,” said Whittaker.
Whittaker shared pictures with ABC Action News of the sight.
“Pretty much seen it every year, and it's about this time of year we usually get it,” said Whittaker. “There had been reports too of some red tide and blooms down south, so when the south wind kind of picked up and brought in some surf and some swell, I knew it probably would eventually get to us."
A FWC map from Tuesday afternoon showed varying degrees of red tide in the water off Manatee and Sarasota counties.
The National Weather Service Tampa Bay also said over the next 36 hours, there's a forecasted high risk of respiratory irritation from red tide at some beaches in Sarasota County.
"Well, I didn't get down to the beach,” said Pamela Seiber. “I started to cough."
It was a similar story about 16 miles down the road on Lido Beach.
Seiber didn't make it far before turning around and changing plans.
"I have COPD, so when it hits my lungs, it takes my breath away,” she said.
"The first day, you know, it was pretty bad,” said George Banter.
Banter first noticed the dead fish on Lido Beach on Sunday, but on a brighter note, he pointed out it now appears to be improving.
"It's getting better, so come on out,” said Banter. “Enjoy the sunshine."
