Schools of Fish Turn Rio’s Leme Waters Into Moving Dark Patches During Heatwave

Overview

• Globocop aerial images captured bathers swimming among large near-surface schools at Praia do Leme on Dec. 26.
• Reports over the last three days described similar surface swaths between Leblon and Urca, drawing beachgoers’ attention.
• Inea characterized the phenomenon as biological behavior by small fish near the surface, not oil or sewage pollution.
• The sightings coincided with an intense heatwave, with forecasts near 39–40°C and an Inmet orange alert in effect through Dec. 26.
• Social posts, including from Júlia Sette at Praia Vermelha, and a biologist’s note of a prior Barra event suggested recurring schools, possibly of majubas.