Thousands of Dead Fish Washed Ashore in South Australia Leave ‘Horrendous’ Odor; What’s the Reason Behind the Mass Kill Event?

Thousands of fish were washed ashore in Middleton Beach on the Fleurieu Peninsula, leaving the locals stunned at the mass kill event.

Massive Fish Kill in Australia

9News obtained footage of dead carp blanketing the shore in South Australia. There were too many dead carp that, according to the residents, the smell was "horrendous." Even if they were already away, they could still smell the odor of the carcasses from the streets back.

Experts believed that the mass kill event was due to natural factors, including the salinity and oxygen levels in the ocean. The changing temperature of the water is also another factor. Pollutants and diseases may have also contributed to the deaths.

A similar incident occurred at the same beach last week, so the recent mass kill event wasn't unprecedented. The Department of Primary Industries and Regions SA (PIRSA) said it is already investigating the matter.

A spokesperson for PIRSA released a statement saying they were aware of the reports about the dead fish washing up at Middleton Beach. The rep said they are already investigating the situation and the cleaning-up option.

The latest wash up was believed to be connected with the ongoing South Coast fish kill event due to the River Murray flood, which was first reported on Jan. 19. The dead fish doesn't pose any threat to swimmers. However, the people are advised not to handle the carcasses.

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Fish Kill on the Darling River

There are several cases of mass fish kill worldwide. In 2019, three fish kills were reported near Menindee on the Darling River. The third one happened after the temperature plummeted following days of hot weather.

Hundreds of thousands of dead native fish were seen floating around the Menindee weir, including Murray cod, golden perch and bony bream.

Graeme McCrabb, one of the locals who had witnessed the consecutive fish kills, told The Guardian the third one was worse than the second. He found 50-centimeter golden perch and tens of thousands of lifeless little bony breams.

However, McCrabb said he didn't see a Murray cod, which can grow up to a meter and be up to 40 or 50 years old. However, he remembered that during the previous fish kill, the Murray cod were the last to surface.

Menindee tourism operator Rob Gregory also told the outlet that a lot of fish were dying, which was a tragedy. He speculated that it was due to the cool days in the area and the fish may have died, sunk to the bottom of the river and then floated days later.

New South Wales premier, Gladys Berejiklian, said mass kill could not have been avoided because the people cannot control the weather. According to her, a sudden drop in temperature makes it conducive for the fish to be deprived of oxygen.