Photo: Brazoria County Parks Department
Work crews have been cleaning up thousands of dead fish at Bryan Beach in Freeport. The Menhaden fish started washing ashore on Friday near Quintana Beach County Park. Officials say the fish kill may be caused by too little oxygen in the water, which is too warm and too calm. Crews cleaned the fish from the Quintana pedestrian beach on Sunday and are aiming for the public beach today.
"According to the Kills and Spills Team in Region 3, the fish kill was investigated and it was determined to have been caused by a low dissolved oxygen event, according to the Brazoria County Parks Department. "The species most impacted was Gulf menhaden. Fish kills like this are common in the summer when temperatures increase. If there isn't enough oxygen in the water, fish can't "breathe."
"Low dissolved oxygen in many cases is a natural occurrence. Daily variations in dissolved oxygen concentration are attributed to photosynthesis and aerobic respiration. Increased dissolved oxygen during the day is a result of photosynthesis which is driven by sunlight. Photosynthesis stops at night and may slow down on cloudy days, but plants and animals in the water continue to respire and consume free oxygen, decreasing the dissolved oxygen concentration. Often before a kill event occurs, fish can be seen trying to get oxygen by gulping at the surface of the water early in the morning. Some fish may also be lying on the bottom or at the edge of the water.”