MENDOCINO CO., 7/29/25 — A flurry of posts on Facebook in mid-June alarmed Mendocino County locals about harmful algae blooms (HABs) caused by cyanobacteria in Lake Mendocino. The posts described an incident in which a dog may have died of neurotoxin poisoning after swimming in the lake. The poster was furious that no signage appeared at the lake about the dangers for pets.
Nothing on Facebook goes unchallenged, and this was no exception. For one, the danger of HABs is usually a subject for late August and September, not mid-June, according to historical data from the California Water Quality Monitoring Council. For another, Lake Mendocino has not been known for HABs, as opposed to nearby Clear Lake, according to the council’s data.
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