(Duxbury Beach was ablaze with red seaweed on Thursday following several days of coastal storms. Duxbury Harbormaster Don Beers said it's not the toxic read tide. Photo by Barbara van Dingstee)

Duxbury Beach was a shocking shade of red which many residents labeled ‘red tide.’ Not so, said Duxbury Harbormaster Don Beers, who wanted the public to know this wasn’t the harmful algae blooms known as red tide which can be toxic to shellfish and the humans who eat them.

The seaweed, while not harmful to shellfish like red tide, does create problems for Duxbury residents in other ways.

“The problem at this time of year as opposed to the winter months, is that it gets covered by the sand starts to rot and ferment and becomes a public health issue it attracts flies and it rots,” said Beers.

While many public beaches may go out with heavy equipment and remove the seaweed, Duxbury Beach is a different situation entirely. Duxbury Beach is privately owned by the Duxbury Beach Reservation and is home to threatened species such as the Piping Plover and Least Tern. The unique ecology of the beach and the federal restrictions due to the federally protected birds makes removal of this colorful seaweed more difficult.

“In Duxbury, the problem is our beach is a habitat for endangered species so you can’t go out there with big equipment and remove the seaweed,” said Beers.

However, it’s not likely the seaweed will be around for very long. Said Beers, “The town will have to review it very carefully and I expect that sometime tomorrow (Friday) morning, they’ll go out there and remove the seaweed.”