Hundreds of incidents of fish violently thrashing and spinning themselves to death have been reported all over Florida and the Gulf Coast.
Usually, when fish act bizarre, it’s because of various reasons, including red tide, high-temperature waters, parasites on the fish, or low oxygen levels. Specialists have eliminated all the possibilities suggested by marine ecologists and others, and now they are left with the question of what is causing the unusual death of these fish. Researchers did discover something important that could help us uncover the culprit. When they put the fish in “clean” water they stopped spinning.
One endangered species, the smalltooth sawfish, joins many others as they take quite a big hit from this unknown killer. According to kktv.com, 27 have already died or “beached themselves” after severe episodes of spinning and flopping. As stated by National Geographic, over 44 fish species have been reported exhibiting this unusual behavior.
Luckily, A small-tooth Sawfish Recovery Team is coming to the rescue and trying to rescue as many sawfish as possible, which will be challenging because of how large they are. The average smalltooth sawfish grows to be about 16 feet long and weighs around 1000 pounds. As explained by Mote Postdoctoral Research Fellow and lead scientist on the sawfish issue, Kathryn Flowers, “We have quarantine facilities ready to accommodate rescued sawfish where they would be under observation by qualified personnel under specific care and release guidelines.” The efforts of the Smalltooth Sawfish Recovery Team to rescue and protect this endangered species are commendable and crucial to ensure the survival of these magnificent creatures.
