Is there something that connects these two events and connects them to the massive seismic activity?
Incredible swarms of fish form off coast of Acapulco: But was surge caused by tsunami thousands of miles away?
By DAILY MAIL REPORTER
Last updated at 8:31 PM on 12th March 2011
Last updated at 8:31 PM on 12th March 2011
The shores of Acapulco's beaches were this weekend teeming with masses of fish packed so tightly they looked like an oil slick from above.
Thousands of sardines, anchovies, stripped bass and mackerel surged along the coast of the Mexican resort in an event believed to be linked to the devastating Japanese tsunami.
Delighted fishermen rushed out in wooden motor boats, abandoning their rods and nets and simply scooping the fish up with buckets.
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1365538/Japan-earthquake-Swarms-fish-coast-Acapulco-caused-tsunami.html#ixzz1GWDx9xhk
Some bathers steered clear of the mysterious event and kept out of the water
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1365538/Japan-earthquake-Swarms-fish-coast-Acapulco-caused-tsunami.html#ixzz1GWDjl0io
Is there something that connects these two events and connects them to the massive seismic activity?
Mass fish death fouls California marina
AP – Redondo Beach city workers use wheel barrels to remove dead fish that were floating in the King Harbor …
REDONDO BEACH, Calif. – An estimated one million fish turned up dead Tuesday in a Southern California marina, creating a floating feast for pelicans, gulls and other sea life and a stinky mess for harbor authorities.
The sardines apparently depleted the water of oxygen and suffocated after getting lost in the marina, officials said.
"All indications are it's a naturally occurring event," said Andrew Hughan, a California Fish and Game spokesman at the scene.
The die-off was unusual but not unprecedented.
"In the world of fishing this is an afternoon's catch," he noted.
Boaters awakened to find a carpet of small silvery fish surrounding their vessels, said Staci Gabrielli, marine coordinator for King Harbor Marina on the Los Angeles County coast.
Authorities said there was also a 12- to 18-inch layer of dead fish on the bottom of the marina.
The scale was impressive to locals at King Harbor, which shelters about 1,400 boats on south Santa Monica Bay.
AFP/Gabriel Bouys
"The fishermen say they've never seen anything this bad that wasn't red tide," Hughan said, referring to the natural blooms of toxic algae that can kill fish.
Brent Scheiwe, an official of Sea Lab, a Los Angeles Conservation Corps research program at Redondo, said testing of some of the water showed oxygen levels near zero.
Hughan said water samples showed no oils or chemicals that could have contributed to the deaths. He said some of the fish were being shipped to a Fish and Game laboratory for study but the cause was likely to be uncomplicated.
The fish appeared to have come into the marina during the night and probably couldn't find their way out, he said.
"The simplest explanation is the fish got lost. ... They get confused easily," he said.
Hughan said there was no safety issue at all but "it's going to smell bad for quite a while."
Fire Department, Harbor Patrol and other city workers set to work scooping up fish in nets and buckets. A skip loader then carried them to big trash bins. Officials initially estimated there were millions of fish, but Fish and Game roughly estimated about a million.
City officials estimated the cleanup would cost $100,000. Fire Chief Dan Madrigal said the fish would be taken to a landfill specializing in organic materials.
On the water, nature was tackling the problem in other ways.
"The seals are gorging themselves," Hughan said.
Large groups of other fish could be seen nibbling at the floating mats of dead creatures.
"The sea's going to recycle everything. It's the whole circle-of-life thing," Hughan said.
Although Fish and Game authorities were focusing on the idea that the sardines simply got confused, other theories abounded.
No comments:
Post a Comment