Pacific Spirit Marine Institute

4,000 Fish Die from Fright Or Frost In Brigham City, Utah!

Saturday, April 5, 2008

On March 19, 4,000 fish were discovered dead near the shoreline of Pioneer Park Pond in Brigham City.

Scientists are at a loss as to why the 4,000 fish went belly up but some are speculating the ice on the pond over winter was so thick it may have cut off enough life to kill oxygen producing plant life. Without the oxygen the fish died.

Judging by the looks of one dead fish that was discovered, maybe the other 3,999 fish died from fright. So strange and horrible looking is this fish, the Division of Wildlife Resources is seeking help to identify the fish. They would also like to know what killed it and the others.

Biologists know one thing about the freaky fish with the frightening teeth…it isn’t native to the area. The fish in question was about 21 inches long.

The mystery fish was found in a parking lot near the pond and may have been drug there by an animal. There is some speculation that the teeth of the fish look worse than they really are because of decomposition. To add insult to the already dead fish it had also been run over in the parking lot.

Another explanation of how the fish ended up in the pond in the first place may be that it was some sort of exotic pet someone got tired of caring for and dumped into the pound.

The saga of the fanged fish is fast becoming the stuff urban legends are made from.

KSL 5 news took a photo of the fish to the Living Planet Aquarium. Among the things this fish is not believed to be are piranha or snakehead. It also doesn’t have a adipose fin that a trout species would have. Walleye would also be out because it doesn’t have spiny fins.

Officials say they want to get started restocking the pond and improving the habitat. I’d be more interested in nailing down what killed all the fish in the first place before restocking the mystery pond with more fish of any kind.

For now the mystery fish is going to be put on ice while what it may be is further researched. If biologists still come up empty they will take the thing off ice and let it further decompose in order to get a better look at its skeleton.

Ever heard of an x-ray machine?

Labels: Brigham City, Fanged Fish, Mystery Fish, Utah