Dead fish washing up on shores of Lake Washington

SEATTLE — There have been reports of dead fish washing up on the shores of Lake Washington, but officials say there’s nothing to worry about.

The Washington Department of Fish & Wildlife said the fish are yellow perch, which are common in the lake.

WDFW said it’s not unusual to see the fish dead in early summer due to a combination of warming water temperatures, spawning, and a naturally occurring bacterial disease.

Yellow perch are seen in many other lakes across Washington, and the fish seen dead after spawning are only a fraction of the population.

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