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The Independent UK
The Independent UK
National
Y. Fabiola Sánchez and Danica Coto

Caribbean and Gulf of Mexico beaches swathed in record levels of seaweed

Mexico Sargassum - (Copyright 2026 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.)

Swaths of seaweed are blanketing the beaches and coastlines of the Caribbean and Gulf of Mexico, suffocating shorelines and snuffing out marine life while spooking visitors in areas that depend heavily on tourism.

Some 27 million metric tons of self-sustaining sargassum have been recorded in the Atlantic, Caribbean and Gulf of Mexico in July, according to a report released Friday by the University of South Florida’s Optical Oceanography Lab.

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