Mysterious!
thousands of dead fish were found washed up along the coastal areas of Thiruvananthapuram in the third week of October. According to the department of fisheries, the fish belong to a group called file-fishes of the Balistidae family, locally known as klathi. The department said spontaneous changes in the deep sea may have caused the mass deaths. However, mortality of other fish species was not observed.
A study team has been constituted to conduct a detailed investigation. The team, comprising officials from the department of fisheries and marine biology scientists, will analyse water samples.
Mass deaths of fish is not new to Kerala. During 1950-54, 1960-62 and 1971-72, mass mortality of klathi fish were recorded. In 1972, the dead fish were in the region of around 410 tonnes. This year, however, the figure is less than a tonne. The investigating team is expected to explain why these deaths occur periodically.
Meanwhile, a high-level team that visited the area has issued a warning against the consumption of the dead fish. It has also instructed local authorities to bury the dead fish in deep pits. Klathi is found between Kollam district of Kerala and Kanyakumari in Tamil Nadu. It does not have great commercial value because of its high oil content. It is usually consumed by local people when the availability of other fish is low.
Related Content
- Judgment of the National Green Tribunal regarding pollution of river Yamuna at Agra and Mathura-Vrindavan due to discharge of untreated sewage in the river, 24/04/2024
- The path that ends AIDS: global AIDS update 2023
- Himalayan brown bear (Ursus arctos isabellinus) ecological and human-bear conflict investigation in Kashmir with special reference to bear habituation to garbage dumps in the Central Wildlife Division
- The mysterious case of GM brinjal cultivation
- Tunisia’s mysterious baby deaths rise to 15
- Botswana: Lempu Jss Closed As 119 Students Catch Mysterious Disease