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By DYLAN DARLING
Thousands of dead fish were found belly up on the
Klamath River southwest of Klamath Falls this week, the apparent victims of
poor water conditions brought on by hot weather.
Among the dead are some young endangered sucker fish, but most of the fish
are tui chubs and fathead minnows, and is no reason for alarm, federal
officials said. The fish die-off was reported Tuesday morning by U.S. Bureau
of Reclamation scientists, who said it occurred Monday evening.
Dead fish were found on a seven-mile stretch of the
Klamath River below Lake Ewauna and in irrigation diversions on the river.
The number of dead suckers were estimated to be "several thousand"
suckers, said Rae Olsen, Bureau spokeswoman.
"Thousands is the only thing I can tell you," she said.
The dead suckers were found mostly near the Lost River Diversion Channel
just south of Klamath Falls, said Roger Smith, fisheries biologist for the
Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife.
Afternoon highs have hovered in the 90s since last Thursday.
"And the day before that it was 86," Smith said.
The warm air makes for hot water. Water in the river was measured at 82
degrees at 4 p.m. Monday.
Suckers can tolerate 75-degree water for quite some time, but it still harms their health, he said.
Fish die-offs are common summertime occurrences that
happen because of a combination of low water and high temperatures. When
temperatures go up, the water quality goes down because oxygen levels are
lowered by decaying algae, Smith said.
Although the warm water and algae blooms can prove fatal for suckers -
especially those only about a year old - and tui chubs and fathead minnows,
trout usually avoid the danger by swimming to cool pockets of water and away
from the algae.
No dead trout have been found.
The die-off won't change how much water the Bureau
releases from Upper Klamath Lake, Olsen said. Officials are required to
conserve water in Upper Klamath Lake, where water quality is also poor and
fish die-offs are a possibility during the summer.
"The most frustrating thing about this is there is nothing we can
do," Olsen said.
Only cooler temperatures will help prevent fish
die-offs. Temperatures are expected to cool slightly over the weekend, the
National Weather Service said.
Source: http://www.heraldandnews.com/articles/2005/07/21/news/top_stories/top3.txt
