NEARLY 30 dead sharks have mysteriously washed up on a popular beach, with an expert warning there could be “something in the water” killing the beasts.
Dozens of the predators suddenly appeared on the shore overnight to the distress of confused locals – and no one knows what has killed the beasts.
Dozens of dead sharks have suddenly washed up on a popular beach Credit: CBS
Locals fear ‘something in the water’ could have killed the predators Credit: CBS
One or two dead sharks wasn’t cause for concern.
But as Michelle Greening went for a morning walk on Wednesday she counted 29 of the animals lying dead on the shore in Sea Isle City, New Jersey.
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Seeing dozens of dogfish lying dead in the sand sparked fears of a toxic substance in the sea, terrifying locals.
Michelle told CBS News: “All of a sudden, you start seeing a concentration of small sand sharks, and I thought, ‘Well, this is odd’.”
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“The first couple weren’t too surprising, but when I saw three and four and five, I knew something was up.”
Locals feared a toxic substance in the ocean could have killed the young sharks.
And Michelle said several of the animals had worrying red markings on their undersides.
Michelle Greening went for a morning walk on Wednesday she counted 29 Credit: 6abc Philadelphia
The predators washed up on Sea Isle City, New Jersey Credit: 6abc Philadelphia
Dogfish sharks can grow to be 5ft in length.
The predators swim in huge schools of hundreds or even thousands, Marine science professor Stephen Nagiewicz said.
But the reason so many died all at once remains a mystery.
Professor Nagiewicz told 6ABC: “A couple of things it could be.
“There’s something in the water, and they got sick and died. That’s probably unlikely since people haven’t been affected.”
He said it’s more likely that the sharks were accidentally caught up in fishing nets before being chucked over the side of boats.
Nagiewicz said: “They dumped them over the side or lost a net with all the things in there by accident, and all those sharks just floated up on the beach with the tides.”
Fishermen often call the predators “junk fish” because they gobble up bait that they use to reel in tastier sea animals.
The sharks have seen a decline in numbers as they are frequently caught in nets.
Dogfish and other small sharks can also come close to the shore to search for food before being trapped by changing tides, according to the New Jersey Division of Fish and Wildlife.
An investigation into the mysterious mass shark deaths is underway.
