On a recent evening, Red Bank resident Tommy Whitonis noticed dozens of dead fish in the mud and water running under the Route 35 Coopers Bridge.
“I looked over the left side and it was low tide [of the Navesink River] so a lot of mud was exposed and saw probably dozens of fish laying there in the mud,” Whitonis said.
He described the fish as “silver, about 8 inches long,” and all looked to be of the same species.
Steve Remaley, owner of the Red Bank Marina, said they were bunker fish dying from lack of oxygen in the water.
“The fish can only go so far, there’s only so much oxygen in the water,” Remaley said. “You see them (swimming) in circles like that in the water and then they die.”
Caryn Shinske, spokeswoman for the state Department of Environmental protection, agreed with Remaley.
“Basically, we suspect what is going on is that predatory fish, such as Blue Fish, have pushed (Atlantic) menhaden, or bunkers, into shallow areas and they’re running out of oxygen. It’s a natural phenomenon,” Shinske said.
Several hundred fish have been reported as dead or dying in the Navesink River, which is not uncommon, Shinske said.
“Menhaden are one of the most bountiful fish in the ocean and are frequently chased into bays or rivers,” she said.
Dead fish can be seen in the water from the West Front Street bridge, to just behind Riverview Medical Center on Front Street. The DEP is also monitoring the situation and performing water tests as a precaution, Shinske said.
Still, Remaley said, the number of dead menhaden this year is high.
“It happens, there’s nothing to prevent it or stop it. … It hasn’t happened in years like this. We’ve seen a few but not as bad as it is,” Remaley said.
“I hope it doesn’t happen like what happened in Shark River a couple of years ago. (It was) the same thing, but worse.” The DEP estimated between 100,000 and 200,000 dead bunker washed up along the Shark River Inlet in May 2014.
Asbury Park Press