Toxic algae bloom suspected in midcoast shellfish die-off

HARPSWELL ANCHOR • September 19, 2026

Clam diggers and other harvesters are reporting huge shellfish die-offs in mudflats around Harpswell. The town’s harbormaster and marine resources administrator, Darcie Couture, said it may be linked to a type of algae that’s not toxic to humans but is known to kill shellfish. Clam digger David Wilson, who is the chair of Harpswell’s Marine Resources Committee, said he noticed “a wicked smell” as he approached the mudflats yesterday near Pennellville, on Middle Bay in Brunswick. He said at first he thought it might be a dead whale that had washed ashore, but as he and the diggers he was with got closer, they saw dead and dying clams spread across the mud.