DFO investigating after 2,500 fish dumped along Georgetown shore

Officers with Fisheries and Oceans Canada are investigating after about 2,500 fish were dumped on the shore in Georgetown, P.E.I.

The fish were noticed on Fridayat the end of Earl Power Road in the town, leading to a complaint to DFO.

"Fish were not counted individually, but we estimate there were about 2,500 of them on the shore," a DFO spokesperson said in an email sent to CBC News Wednesday.

"It is possible that the fish are bycatch from the silverside box net commercial fishery."

P.E.I. and Nova Scotia havethe only commercial Atlantic silverside fisheries in Canada. The small fish resemble minnows, spawn in coastal ponds and rivers, and are usually fished from dories and frozen for use as bait and zoo food, according to the P.E.I. Flavours website.

"They are prey for many larger fish, birds and marine mammals and rarely live past 2 years," says a species description on the DFO website.

The DFO spokesperson's email to CBC said, "Apart from green crab, all fish incidentally caught in the commercial silverside box net fishery must be released back into the water near the place where it was removed or fished and where it is alive, in a manner that causes it the least harm."

Species that must be released if caught incidentallyinclude rainbow smelt, sand lance, stickleback and mummichog, said DFO.

More from CBC P.E.I.