Lake Erie Dead Fish Mystery

An unsolved phenomena that is currently being investigated: thousands of dead fish and seagulls washed to shores of Canada's Lake Erie. Scientists are testing samples from the dead animals, trying to decipher what caused the deaths.

Despite the uncertainty, one explanation is a phenomenon called 'lake inversion':

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When a lake is 'inverted' cold water, which carries less oxygen than warmer water because it is heavier, is found close to the surface where most of the fish are. The lack of oxygen causes the animals to suffocate.

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We'll see what later reports say.

So it's confirmed that it was not a spill or contamination issue, nor was it algae growth that killed the fish. The fish died because of a lack of oxygen in the lake water:

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The environment ministry said Friday the water tests confirm that a naturally occurring temperature inversion brought an oxygen-depleted layer of water from the bottom of the lake close to the surface causing the widespread kill.

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