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Fish kill reported at Masonboro Island in Wilmington
Story Date: 1/14/2013
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Source: NCDENR, 1/11/13
State environmental officials are reporting hundreds of thousands of dead Atlantic Menhaden fish this week at Masonboro Island in Wilmington.
The dead fish are along the Masonboro Island beaches and in the water, stretching over a one-mile area from the Mason Inlet jetty to Loosins Creek, officials with the N.C. Department of Environment and Natural Resources reported.
The state’s Division of Coastal Management, which manages Masonboro Island through its Coastal Reserve and National Estuarine Research Reserve Program, was first notified of the fish kill by a member of the public. The N.C. Marine Patrol also responded to a report from the public late Wednesday afternoon.
The Atlantic Menhaden appear to have clustered by the thousands in a narrow area at Loosins Creek, causing dissolved oxygen levels in the water to plummet to nearly zero in less than one hour, killing the fish. This situation has been previously observed in winter months, and occurs when the menhaden begin to tighten their school, possibly due to the presence of predators.
Coastal Management maintains a System-wide Monitoring Program, or SWMP, monitoring station in the area where the fish kill occurred. The station continuously monitors the water for dissolved oxygen levels, temperature and pH levels, among other data. The monitoring station recorded a significant drop in dissolved oxygen levels in the early morning hours of Jan. 8. The Masonboro Island station is part of a national network of monitoring stations in coastal estuaries.
“This may be the first time we have had continuous monitoring of water quality in an area at the exact time of a fish kill,” said Jim Gregson, Surface Water Protection supervisor for the state Division of Water Quality. “The data recorded by Coastal Management’s monitoring station was a big help in determining the cause of this event.”
Staff members from the divisions of Coastal Management, Water Quality and Marine Fisheries are continuing to monitor the area. Dead fish will most likely continue to surface along Masonboro Island over the weekend.
“Masonboro Island is a highly-visited site,” said reserve site manager Hope Sutton. “Although there is no danger to the public from this event, with the beautiful weather we’re expecting this weekend, we want to be sure visitors are aware they will likely encounter large numbers of dead fish on some of the island’s beaches, along with large numbers of water birds feeding on them.”
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