Massive Fish Kill on Florida Beach

Thousands of dead fish washed ashore along a few East Central Florida Beaches overnight on December 21st. The dead fish were mostly Thread Herring and were causing quite a stench and sickening some birds - notably a young Northern Gannet in a bit of stupor. Hundreds of gulls and other birds were drawn to the scene, but hardly any appeared to be eating the fish, perhaps sensing that something was wrong and they may be toxic. Large fish kills have been reported for the last few weeks around Florida perhaps due to toxic algae blooms. Tests were taken of this fish kill and results will be announced within a week. I can say the general "ambiance" caused eyes to water and was generally uncomfortable. It will take some time for nature to clean up the mess and with near record Christmas heat the 1000's of dead fish left on the high tide line will be quite a sensory overload!