Officials advise not to eat certain fish

A poison produced by a massive algae bloom in the ocean is marine life, and it has prompted state health officials to warn against eating some fish and shellfish that are not caught commercially.

Animal death tolls due to domoic acid poisoning have been especially high in Newport Beach and Huntington Beach, officials said.

Sea animals began getting sick Sunday. Since then, the Wetlands and Wildlife Care Center in Huntington Beach has taken in 94 birds, Board President Debbie McGuire said on Friday. Only 13 are still alive, and those are in serious condition, she said.The Pacific Marine Mammal Center in Laguna Beach has seen 30 sea lions since the poisonings began, but only nine 9 are still alive and in poor condition, spokeswoman Emily Wing said.

On Friday, the state Department of Health Services advised people not to eat bivalve shellfish, sardines and anchovies they catch themselves, and to avoid the organs of all lobsters and crabs. Commercially caught clams, mussels, scallops and oysters are exempt from the warning because they are frequently tested for safety.

— Alicia Robinson contributed to this story.