Extreme heat likely contributed to a fish kill that spanned almost 14 miles along the Potomac River in Montgomery County, according to the Maryland Department of the Environment.
Temperatures topped 100 degrees in parts of Maryland during the Fourth of July weekend, breaking records across the state. The water temperature in the Potomac reached a record 94 degrees upstream of Little Falls, according to the department.
The state began investigating the fish kill on Saturday. A combination of heat stress, drought conditions and potential bacterial infections caused fish to die between Whites’s Ferry and Violette’s Lock, according to the department.
Most of the dead fish were golden redhorse suckers, a native species common in freshwater habitats in the eastern U.S.
Maryland Department of the Environment investigators are collecting additional water quality measurements, but officials said there is no evidence of a chemical spill or a pollution event at this time.
Fish kills, events when a large population of fish suddenly die, are more common during the summer when waters become warm and oxygen levels drop, according to the department. Rapid changes in temperature as well as other issues, like pollution from runoff and wastewater overflows, can contribute to fish kills.
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