Clean Monday
Clean Monday is a public holiday in Greece and Cyprus, where it is celebrated with outdoor excursions, the consumption of shellfish and other fasting food, a special kind of azyme bread, baked only on that day, named "lagana" () and the widespread custom of flying kites. Eating meat, eggs and dairy products is traditionally forbidden to Orthodox Christians throughout Lent, with fish being eaten only on major feast days, but shellfish is permitted in European denominations. This has created the tradition of eating elaborate dishes based on seafood (shellfish, molluscs, fish roe etc.). Traditionally, it is considered to mark the beginning of the spring season, a notion which was used symbolically in Ivan Bunin's critically acclaimed story, "Pure Monday".
Harmful algal bloom
Diatoms produce domoic acid, another neurotoxin, which can cause seizures in higher vertebrates and birds as it concentrates up the food chain. Domoic acid readily accumulates in the bodies of shellfish, sardines, and anchovies, which if then eaten by sea lions, otters, cetaceans, birds or people, can affect the nervous system causing serious injury or death. In the summer of 2015, the state governments closed important shellfish fisheries in Washington, Oregon and California because of high concentrations of domoic acid in shellfish.