Bacteria To Blame For Hundreds Of Dead Fish In Monmouth, NJ Says

RED BANK, NJ - The cause for hundreds of dead fish washing ashore in Monmouth County in recent weeks can be traced to an “undetermined species of bacteria,” state environmental authorities said Wednesday.

Hundreds of dead menhaden fish have been spotted floating in the Raritan Bay and Navesink and Shrewsbury rivers, with similar instances occurring in New York, Connecticut and Rhode Island since last fall. State environmental authorities, including the New Jersey Department of Environmental Prosecution, are currently working to identify a bacteria known as Vibrio that seems to be the likely culprit.

“The New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection’s Division of Fish and Wildlife is actively investigating menhaden mortalities reported in Raritan Bay and the Navesink River of Monmouth County,” New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection Press Officer Larry Hajna told Patch in an emailed statement. “The Division has preliminarily identified an undetermined species of bacteria in the Vibrio family of bacteria as the cause of the mortalities. More laboratory work is being done to determine the specific species of bacteria. The DEP is also working with the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission to better understand the mortalities.”

Local environmental groups like the New Jersey Sierra Club and the Long Branch-based Clean Ocean Action (COA) are now demanding federal and state action in light of the chronic menhaden mortalities, calling the fish "a keystone species" for the regional ecosystem. According to a recent blog post, COA is now calling for fast federal and state funding to research this Vibrio species, as well as other impacts and possible solutions.

“It is alarming that hundreds of Menhaden, or bunker fish, have been washing up dead across the state. Now the DEP is completely spinning the facts and downplaying the seriousness of the issue," said Jeff Tittel the director of the New Jersey Sierra Club. "The Vibrio bacteria causing these fish kills is primarily linked to nutrient pollution from sewage, septic, and storm water runoff. It’s also linked to warmer water, which is connected to climate change. This is even more alarming because the bacteria can cause illness in humans, so anyone swimming in the water could get sick. This is a direct result of the DEP’s failure to deal with water pollution from nutrients and raw sewage. Menhaden are a key link in the food chain, so if they get sick or die off it affects other species like bluefish, striped bass as well as marine mammals and birds like ospreys and bald eagles.”

Around a dozen species of Vibrio can cause vibriosis, an illness in humans that can cause gastrointestinal illness, although most cases can be traced from eating raw or undercooked shellfish. However, Vibrio species can also cause skin infections when open sounds are exposed to salt water or brackish water.

Similar instances of mass fish deaths in the Hudson and Hackensack rivers have recently been attributed to low oxygen in the water, according to the Associated Press. The publication reports that, in the latest string of deaths, fish apparently experienced multiple organ failure and high levels of Vibrio.

According to Hajna, there remains no risk to human or wildlife health in New Jersey.

“Vibrio species are quite diverse and common in marine habitats. The only fish species being impacted appears to be menhaden, an extremely abundant fish found in coastal areas harvested primarily for bait and non-food commercial purposes,” Hajna said. “There is nothing to suggest human health or other fish, shellfish or wildlife are at risk. As with any wildlife, however, the New Jersey Division of Fish and Wildlife recommends people do not handle, collect, or consume any dead fish or those showing signs of disease.”