Large fish kill in the Shark River

[Abrasion]

BELMAR — A fish kill is being reported by mariners along the Shark River as what appear to be mostly moss bunker gulp for air at the surface, said Bob Matthews, a worker at Fisherman’s Den Bait and Tackle.

“I have never seen anything like this when the water temperature is 58 degrees,” Matthews said.

Michael Meddis, public health coordinator in the Monmouth County Health Department, said right now, “the fish kill appears to be limited to the Shark River,” and bunker are the affected species.

The fish kill is in the boat basin in Belmar and the Coast Guard is on the scene, Meddis said.

“I know there’s a large number” of fish affected, he said. “Exactly how many, I don’t know at this point.”

The state Department of Environmental Protection has been contacted for information but has not returned calls. Matthews said that the DEP was at the site collecting fish.

Moss bunker, fluke, blowfish and winter flounder are coming up to the surface to get air, Matthews said.

Meddis said the health department received a call at about 5:30 a.m. Monday and the DEP’s pathologist took samples of the fish to look for “various parasites or toxins, whatever.”

County spokeswoman Laura Kirkpatrick said in an email that the DEP is taking the lead on the fish kill.

Meddis said bunker “reproduce in large numbers and typically they use up a lot of oxygen. We’re going to take some dissolved oxygen readings as soon as our water crew is available.”

The crew began sampling the waters at beaches today as part of the beach season sampling program, according to Meddis.

Most fish kills are due to oxygen depletion and officials “typically see that in the summer months, but ... there could be other causes,” he said.

Bruce Degraw of Wall, who is a member of the Shark River Yacht Club, called it a “massive die-off of bunker from the river.”

Degraw said he believes the river is unhealthy and “is from the river filling in with silt.”