Posted on 01/05/2011 1:05:33 AM PST by Pinkbell
State officials say they are investigating a "very large" fish kill in the Chesapeake Bay, but suspect cold temperatures killed them, rather than any water-quality problems.
An estimated 2 million fish have been reported dead from the Bay Bridge south to Tangier Sound, according to the Maryland Department of the Environment, which investigates fish kills. The dead fish are primarily adult spot, with some juvenile croakers.
Agency spokeswoman Dawn Stoltzfus said bay water quality appears acceptable, and biologists believe "cold-water stress" the likely cause of the fish kill. Spot are susceptible to colder water, she said, and normally leave the upper bay by now. Water temperatures plummeted in late December to near-record lows for that time of year, about 36 degrees. The average air temperature last month was 32.4 degrees, 4.3 degrees below normal, and reached 16 degrees at its lowest, according to the National Weather Service.
Large winter kills of spot have been documented at least twice before, the MDE spokeswoman said, with about 15 million dying in early 1976 and a smaller number in 1980. Anyone wanting to report seeing dead fish can call 1-800-MDE-GOTO.
(Excerpt) Read more at baltimoresun.com ...
Yes, locally they are warning Texas to get ARCTIC Blast next week.We had snow last year (Houston), maybe a blizzard this year?
The southerly march of the cold level might be beneficial.
Consider the palm tree, and Green Jays, and fire ants and Africanized bees..... all south loving species. They stop migrating northward somewhere in Texas.
If the cold continues south, perhaps the native Mexican human species will find it too cold north of the river and will quit coming.
Global cooling might save America
Yeah, Blue Ball’s not far from Intercourse, PA.
OOps..... left out the obvious.
Global Warming causes Mexican migration
Maryland was freezing last year at this time and I don’t remember a fish kill. Any other Marylander’s out there who remember one?
Yes those folks born in Roswell, New Mexico have very annoying Bronx accents.
The fish kill was probably all the cars using the Chesapeake Bay bridge to get to the football games. Therefore the football games and all non official vehicle traffic on the Bay bridge should be stopped to protect the fish. Just think of all the oil that drips out of the cars into the Bay also. There I diagnosed the problem for free, hundreds of miles away from the scene/s.
Yep, we never have cold winter water in the Chesapeake Bay, those fish sure must have been surprised
and when they die en masse in the summer, it’s due to “lack of oxygen”
sarc
I can remember when the bay was frozen solid ...and no massive fish kills
Fact is Tangier to the Bay Bridge is a BIG chunk of the Bay, will we ever get the honest word about WTF is going on
Maryland freezes every winter
Nothing extreme has happened
I remember in the 90s(?) a winter when the Bay was frozen solid and ice cutters had to keep the channel open to Baltimore but the fish didn’t die by the millions
And they're both just a few miles from Bird-In-Hand and Paradise.
Russia says Wheeler was killed because he was about to blow the whistle on what is happening to the birds, fish , etc.
Whatever happened to Wheeler, he went out in a very unusual way.
All the ingredients needed to give the EPA more power.
If it’s cold enough to drive away or kill what they eat, that could cause trouble. Also if the cold leads to a rise in the population of something unfriendly to fish.
Some delicate balance was likely disturbed in any case.
We can take heart, however...there are more fish down there than floating up here.
>>>>I’m waiting for the rain of Frogs next.
It’s rained frogs before... involves a waterspout over a frog-filled pond, and they get sucked up, and then dropped. Now if it rains, 3-legged frogs, then you need to be worried.
“Maryland freezes every winter...”
That is what I am remembering. Last year was very cold and I don’t recall a fish kill. I remember when they had to cut through the channels as well. No fish kill. Interesting?!
Now if it rains, 3-legged frogs, then you need to be
happy. I love frog legs. mmmmmm.
Maryland
They drowned. ;)
Interesting... something is going on.
LLS
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