Islanders have been warned to be cautious following the discovery of dead reef fish in our waters.
The cause of it is not yet known but experts say they may be down to water quality, parasites or an algae bloom - a rapid increase in the population of algae.
Government yesterday said it was still safe to eat local fish.
The largest numbers of dead fish were discovered near Dockyard last week and near Scotts Bay, Somerset, at the weekend.
The Department of Environmental Protection has warned fishermen to look out for affected fish.
It is believed the "die off" is only affecting reef fish such as snapper, hogfish, bream, squirrelfish, angelfish and porgies.
There are no recorded deaths of pelagic and migratory species such as tuna, wahoo or rockfish.
Lesions
No one has needed hospital treatment as a result of eating bad fish.
Dr. Fred Ming, director for environmental protection, said: "We recommend that people do not take fish that are at the surface flopping around, clearly in distress or fish that are showing bodily lesions.
"We have seen what looks like haemorrhaging just under the skin, signs of discolouration, skin loss and fish that are distressed at the surface.
If they are very lethargic and still alive put them on ice and bring them to our Coney Island facility in Bailey's Bay or to other Environmental Protection facilities."
The public can also take specimens to the aquarium, preferably in a plastic bag filled with water.
Die-offs are not uncommon and have occurred in Bermuda before.
The last significant time was in 1997 when droves of pinfish washed up in Harrington Sound.
Toxic
Research into the cause was never definitive, although director of fisheries at the time, John Barnes, said there was evidence that natural chemicals, possibly caused by the El Nino weather system, caused an increase in toxic plankton.
A team of local and international experts will try to discover the cause of the current spate of deaths.
They include staff at BIOS, Conservation Services, Environmental Protection and Dr. Ian Walker, acting curator at Bermuda Aquarium, Museum and Zoo.
He will perform necropsies on live and recently dead fish to determine the cause of death and send samples to a lab in the U.S.
Dr. Ming has also called his counterparts in Barbados, where there was a significant die-off in 1999, while Dr. Gerry Plumley, a marine algae specialist at the BIOS Station, will contact NOAA (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration).
Aerial photographs of the water will be shot to determine if there are algae blooms.
Dr. Ming said: "There are so many species of algae and there are new species showing up periodically so the identification of a particular species that is responsible is not easy. We will systematically go through and follow the three pathways - looking for signs of algae or other bloom-related organisms, looking at the fish themselves for signs of parasites, pathogens and fungal infections and looking at water quality parameters.
"It could be a combination of these. If there are things getting in the gills like small jellyfish or ctenophore then that would be a line of investigation. We need to ask, 'Where does this organism show up elsewhere in the world? What's its natural history, what type of damage has it been causing in other parts of the world and what kind of hazard does it pose for Bermuda? Are there risks to the human population?'
"We don't want to leave any stones unturned and the more minds that we can bring to bear on solving this riddle the better."
Posted: Monday, September 21, 2009
Comment by:
Sara
I find it odd that both papers ran this story early last week, yet no update at end of last week. What is the latest on this please?
Posted: Thursday, September 17, 2009
Comment by:
Deborah Blaxell
I live near Grape Bay and there are lots od dead fish all over the beach. Toursits look slightly horrified! Not sure I would swim at the moment.
Posted: Wednesday, September 16, 2009
Comment by:
Find the truth or a lie
Take a look around the cruise ships the next time they dock or disembark in dockyard. After a while you will see dead fish floating there, then they float away.
