More than 500 fish are believed to have died on the river Rye near Maynooth, Co Kildare, in what Inland Fisheries Ireland (IFI) describes as a “significant fish kill”.
In conjunction with other government agencies, IFI is investigating the mortalities, which were observed over a 4km stretch of the river.
Species of fish that were discovered dead include brown trout, lamprey, stone loach, minnow and gudgeon.
Environmental officers have been on site to investigate the incident alongside members of the Environmental Protection Agency, Kildare County Council and the River Basin Management Services.
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Water and fish samples have been taken from the river and will be sent for analysis.
In a statement, the interagency group said it is “actively probing the cause of this harmful ecological event, but it’s too early to definitively establish how it occurred”.
IFI says it is leading the process in line with the new national interagency protocol for investigating significant fish kills.
IFI, the State agency responsible for conserving, protecting and managing Ireland’s inland fisheries and sea angling resources, is appealing to the public to report any instances of fish kills, water pollution, habitat destruction or illegal fishing to its confidential number, 0818 34 74 24.
