Lately I have been seeing numerous dead species in my local canal... Tilapia, bass, and even ducks! At first I thought the county sprayed for weeds and it killed a few fish. But then I was confused when I saw the ducks, I've never seen this many dead ducks... Anyway, this has been for the past couple of weeks and I've been confused.

Yesterday I was walking the bank when I looked down and saw a dead largemouth bass with a tennis ball stuck in his mouth (holding his mouth open). The bass was caught, had a tennis ball stuck in his mouth, and released. I'm not certain, but it now leads me to believe that some of the other dead species have been intentional as well...

I was extremely upset when I saw the LMB dead and extremely skinny... >

thats just rude... people that do that really hit a nerve with me....  >

I'll never understand cruelty, it's just not part of me.

That just infuriates me. Who could be so cruel?

Falcon

It is probably a group of stupid teens.  Some teens, especially when they get together in large groups, have a huge capacity for doing stupid, mean, or even evil things - just because they are bored and have no respect for nature (or no respect for anything else).  I would suspect BB guns for the birds, and maybe even for a lot of the fish.  Now, these are probably troubled teens, and not representative of all teens, but I see it a lot where I am and I'm in a rural area.  I can only assume it is worse where you are - southern FL, more urban?  

That just infuriates me. Who could be so cruel?

Falcon

X2  

You need to contact your local Parks and Wildlife office to let them know what is going on.

Yeah that sucks....Have you contacted the Game Warden?......I'm sure he would have a idea.....if not, tell him what you've seen and might raise his eyebrow. Could start a little investigation and put a boot in someone's  a**!

Good idea, I didn't think of that...  I'm going to call them.  I don't have any patience for this kind of stuff...   and I hate to cast judgement, but I agree that it might be the local kids in the neighborhood.    

omg i cant stand that stuff, i have actually freaked out on people when i see them being cruel to animals for no reason. like i saw this one kid that i hated catch a channel cat shoot it down the throat with a airsoft gun and all his buddies and him laughed when they finnally released it, i went over there and threatened them i would shoot them with my airsoft guns.

god i hate that

Thats horrible >

Not to disagree at all. Just curious as to how you know a tennis ball wasn't just floating in the water, and a bass attempted to eat it...

Regardless of that, it sucks when tons of animals are dying in your body of water. In January I counted over 20 dead birds in my local water.

That would truly suck if you have some teenage kids running around killing birds and fish just to be cool and have "Fun".

ITS sickening how teens act nowdays and the worst part about it is society has made it so they dont need to or have to take responsibilty for anything they do .When the goverment stepped into our lives tellin us we cant spank our kids it went downhil from there .there is a excuse for everything kids do these days and they all know how to work the system like pros >

ITS sickening how teens act nowdays and the worst part about it is society has made it so they dont need to or have to take responsibilty for anything they do .When the goverment stepped into our lives tellin us we cant spank our kids it went downhil from there .there is a excuse for everything kids do these days and they all know how to work the system like pros >

Just don't leave a bruise and things are fine  

I'm thinking the bass was already dead.  Found by a couple 13 years olds, and they put the ball in it's mouth.  

I'm no tennis ball in fish mouth expert, but I love to gamble, and I put the odds at 3.5:1  against someone putting the ball in the fishes mouth, and letting it go.  Just one fools opinion.

wow gotta love how teens are automaticly responsible for everything bad that is done nowadays :-X

I have a couple bald eagles fishing my pond in the back yard. I have seen them pull 4 pound Bass outta there like it aint no thang! Lucky there are still plenty left. Any other bird and I'd be real pizzed, but the eagle's you gotta cut some slack  

Its sad is what it is. Pollution of this planet is way too extreme. You wish you could do something to stop it, but it takes everybody. The next time your fishing and smoking a cigarette and think about pitchin' it in the water, stop and remember.

I have a couple bald eagles fishing my pond in the back yard. I have seen them pull 4 pound Bass outta there like it aint no thang! Lucky there are still plenty left. Any other bird and I'd be real pizzed, but the eagle's you gotta cut some slack

It would be cool if you could get some pictures of them carrying the fish!

wow gotta love how teens are automaticly responsible for everything bad that is done nowadays :-X

um, I know it's not the 50 year old man that fishes behind my house....  :-?  

or maybe it was and he did it while painting the stop sign and throwing stuff in the community pool....

I'm no tennis ball in fish mouth expert, but I love to gamble, and I put the odds at 3.5:1 against someone putting the ball in the fishes mouth, and letting it go. Just one fools opinion.

I'll take those odds...   there's a certain level of respect that is absent in a large portion of today's society...

wow gotta love how teens are automaticly responsible for everything bad that is done nowadays :-X

um, I know it's not the 50 year old man that fishes behind my house.... :-?

or maybe it was and he did it while painting the stop sign and throwing stuff in the community pool....

so you automaticly rule out that it was not anybody at all and by some chance just a coincidence? or how about guys in there early twenties, college students?. i for one know that they are perfectly capable of doing these things and things that you have stated above. and im not gonna act like i've never seen and adult do something wrong or stupid. i just find it funny how everyone likes to stereotype teenagers as guilty for everything when they have no way of knowing

This kind of stuff whether or not anyone actually put the ball in the bass's mouth  while alive happens all over the place all the time.  And I must agree it is usually males from 13 to 30.  I'm 24 myself and have gotten into numerous confrontations at local lakes and ponds with guys right around my age over their behavior to fish and wildlife.  Everything from kicking an injured duck for no reason to throwing bass and other fish species as high and as far as they can when they release them.  Nothing makes me as mad as seeing this stuff happen.