posted 07-03-2001 06:01 PM            

Unfortunately we have read too many of these stories lately.

'Dead carp washing up in Quebec'

MONTREAL - The air around Quebec City is heavy with the smell of dead and dying carp.
At least 4,000 of the fish have washed up in the last week on both shores of the St. Lawrence River between Cap-Santé and Lévis, just west of the capital city.
"We're looking at three possible causes and we will find the answer through a process of elimination," said Guy Trencia, a biologist at Quebec's wildlife and parks corporation.
The most likely reason has to do with what we all suffered in the month of June - heat.
"The carp go to shallow and marshy areas to spawn," Mr. Trencia said. "Water levels are so low this year, the fish probably got caught and couldn't get back to deeper waters. As the water heated up, the oxygen, which the fish need to survive, decreased."
The least likely cause is some kind of contamination, either toxic or chemical, because only one species has been affected, he said.
The second least likely cause is bacteria. It does happen, but it's not frequent, he said.
Dying carp from the Quebec City region have been sent to the Université de Montréal's school of veterinary medicine in Sainte-Hyacinthe and results are expected today.
"Most of the carp found measure between 30 and 70 centimetres, and one was close to three feet," Trencia said.