fish kill??

[flipper]

I fished near joe bald this p.m. i saw several large carp carcass!! in about a 1 mile stretch there were 5 or 6 on the bank. just wandered if this is normal or somthing bad?? all were fairly large.

[Phil Lilley]

See http://ozarkanglers.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=1952 for the answer.

[Flysmallie]

Here is what MDC has to say about it.

Fish kills around the state are not cause for concern.

JEFFERSON CITY-An unusual number of fish kills across Missouri has some anglers

wondering what the problem is. Fish experts say the answer lies in the weather.

And while fish die-offs are not good news, it is not cause for serious concern,

either.

Resource Scientist Leanna Zweig oversees fish kill investigations for the Missouri

Department of Conservation. She said she routinely receives reports of fish kills

in the spring, but this year has been different.

"Most years, we might get one report of dying fish a week" said Zweig.

"Right now it is more like five a week. They are coming from all over the state

and from every kind of water body-private ponds, big reservoirs, rivers and creeks."

Zweig says every fish species has been affected, from crappie and largemouth bass

to suckers and shad. Most kills have involved 50 to 100 fish. The biggest reported

so far this year was in the Kings River, a tributary of Table Rock Lake. The first

report came on April 18, and fish continued to die there for several days.

Conservation Department Fish Pathologist Devona Weirich said that while the number

of fish kills this spring is unusual, the phenomenon itself is common.

"Fish experience a lot of stress in the spring," said Weirich. "They

often haven't eaten very well during the winter, and they go right into spawning,

which can be exhausting. Their immune systems are very weak, and this results in

some fish dying."

On top of normal stresses, Missouri waters have been affected by an unusually dry,

warm spring. Water temperatures are higher than normal for this time of year, and

water levels in streams and reservoirs is below normal, especially in southwest

Missouri. Water quality is worse than usual, and fish are crowded into less space.

Weirich said it is no wonder a larger than normal number are succumbing.

In many cases, reports have involved what Zweig called "furry fish," dead

fish with an advanced growth of bacteria or fungus covering their bodies. She said

accurate determination of the cause of death is almost impossible when decomposition

is that far advanced.

Spring fish kills usually happen when external parasites damage fishes' skin or

gills. This leads to a bacterial infection, which kills the animal.

"That is what seems to be going on in all the reports we have received so far,"

said Weirich. "We don't have any reason to suspect pollution or other environmental

problems. It's basically natural causes. We simply have a worse-than-normal case

of what we see every spring."

Zweig emphasized that the Conservation Department needs people to report fish kills

as quickly as possible. Fisheries workers can tell much more if they arrive when

fish are still dying than after they are dead.

If you see dead or dying fish, look for unusual conditions, such as odor or signs

of petroleum products on the surface of the water. Also look carefully at the dead

fish before calling the Conservation Department. Zweig said she investigates several

reports each year that turn out to be fish carcasses discarded by anglers.

To report fish kills, call the nearest Conservation Department office or contact

Zweig directly at leanna.zweig@mdc.mo.gov, (573) 882-9880, ext. 3228.

-Jim Low-