09.03.2011, 15:35 3302

Millions of dead fish turn up in southern California harbour

Millions of small fish, including anchovies, mackerel and sardines, washed up dead in Redondo Beach, California, Kazakhstan Today reports.

Almaty. March 9. Kazakhstan Today - Millions of small fish, including anchovies, mackerel and sardines, washed up dead in Redondo Beach, California, Kazakhstan Today reports.

Californian fishermen and harbour chiefs were puzzled after millions of dead anchovies were found floating in a marina just south of Los Angeles on Tuesday, The Telegraph reported.

Experts said the fish, found at a harbour in Redondo Beach, may have died from lack of oxygen due to algae, while locals wondered if high winds overnight might have something to do with it.

"It looks like what happens to goldfish when you don't change the water in the tank, mouth open and belly up," said local official Bill Workman, cited by the Los Angeles Times newspaper.

"There are no visible signs of any toxins that might have caused (the deaths) and our early assessment is that this was oxygen depletion," he said, adding: "There are no oil slicks or leaking of substances into the water."

Staci Gabrielli, marine co-ordinator for King Harbor Marina, on the Los Angeles County coast, suspects that the silvery fish were attempting to escape a red tide, a naturally occurring rapid accumulation of algae in a water column, which will poison fish or starve them of oxygen, Daily Mail informs.

Authorities specializing in fish and game arrived at King Harbor Marina this morning to begin taking samples of the dead fish.

'All evidence points to oxygen deprivation as cause of death. There is no oil sheen, nor is there a chemical sheen,' California Department of Fish and Game spokesman Andrew Hughan said.

This mass death of fish follows the mystery of over 3000 blackbirds falling from the sky in New Year's Eve last year in Beebe, Arkansas.

Fireworks were ultimately believed to be the culprit in that case, but the mystery is officially unsolved.

Just a few days later, a similar incident occurred in 500 red-winged blackbirds fell from the sky in Pointe Coupee, Louisiana.

Around the same time early this year, approximately 80,000 to 100,000 fish washed up dead on the shores of the Arkansas River near the city of Ozark.

This information may not be reproduced without reference to Kazakhstan Today. Copyright of materials of News Agency Kazakhstan Today.

Found an error in the text?

Select the error and press Ctrl + Enter at the same time.

relevant news

Most viewed