Fish are dying once again in western Virginia.
Each spring since 2004, an unknown ailment has sickened and killed fish, mainly in the Shenandoah River but also in the upper James River and other streams.
This year, people have been reporting dead and dying fish since mid-May.
"This is very mild compared to what we've had in previous years," said Bill Hayden a spokesman for the state Department of Environmental Quality.
People have reported problems in these waterways:
North Fork of the Shenandoah River in Shenandoah County.
Upper James River near Buchanan in Botetourt County.
Upper portions of the South Fork of the Shenandoah River in Rockingham County.
Lower sections of the North, Middle and South rivers in the Augusta County area.
The number of dead fish this spring appears to be low — a few per mile in most areas, state officials said.
Most of the victims have been smallmouth bass and sunfish. Scientists have found that dead and dying fish collected over the past two years were infected with a bacterium that normally wouldn't afflict them, Hayden said.
It's possible that something is weakening the fish — some sort of pollution, perhaps — to the point that they are succumbing to the bacterium, Hayden said.
An investigating is continuing.
Report dead, dying fish
State officials ask that people with information call the state Department of Environmental Quality at (540) 574-7800 or toll-free at (800) 592-5482.
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