NEWPORT, Vermont environmental and fisheries police will host a virtual public meeting on December 9 from 4:00 to 5:00 p.m. to discuss research into tumors found on brown bullhead fish in Lake Memphremagog.
Rick Levey of the Department of Environmental Conservation and Pete Emerson of the Fish and Wildlife Department will present results from surveys conducted between 2014 and 2018 in South Bay, Hospital Cove, and Derby Bay. Those surveys found that 20 to 30 percent of brown bullhead had skin lesions or tumors.
The prevalence of such abnormalities in wild fish has long been used as an indicator of environmental quality. Researchers from the Vermont Fish and Wildlife Department, Department of Environmental Conservation, and the U.S. Geological Survey National Fish Health Laboratory have been investigating possible causes.
“When new or novel problems surface, like the discovery of a high incidence of brown bullhead lesions in the South Bay of Lake Memphremagog, the Agency turns to its team of scientists to investigate possible causes and ultimately, identify solutions,” said ANR Secretary Julie Moore.
To participate by phone, call 802-828-7667 and enter conference ID 730 614 326#.
NEK will be looking into whether any health advisories have been issued for Lake Memphremagog as a result of these findings.
Originally reported by Newport Dispatch.
Photo: Patagonia Savage via Pexels. Photo is illustrative and not from the scene.
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