Hundreds of thousands of sprat fish washed up on Benar Beach in Wales on Saturday, October 17.
The fish were pushed to the shoreline by predatory species such as mackerel and got stuck on sandbanks in shallow water. Most of them have died.
THREAD: Our officers received a report yesterday of a number of fish that have washed up on Benar beach, near Barmouth in North Wales. pic.twitter.com/l0Bs7O0l7D
— Cyfoeth Naturiol Cymru | Natural Resources Wales (@NatResWales) October 18, 2020
‘When the tide comes in there are pockets in the sand and the sprats get stranded in them. It’s not a massively rare thing,’ Robert Redman of Welsh Wild Waters told the BBC.
‘What happens is the mackerel push the sprat far into the coast – they feed on the sprat. Once they get so far in and the tide comes in, the sprat get stranded.’
Locals are expecting dolphins, seals, mackerel and bass to descend on the schools of fish to feed on the easy prey.
Vanessa Lang, team leader for Natural Resources Wales, said that while this phenomenon is unfortunate for the fish, it is nothing to be overly concerned about. ‘It is only nature at work,’ she added.
Picture: Twitter/Natural Resources Wales
