A Christmas Day walk along Holmes Beach in Anna Maria Island turned foul today with the discovery of hundreds of dead fish washed ashore.

Tourists and residents discovered the dead fish littered along the Anna Maria shoreline Christmas morning. The fish measured about a foot in length and created a stench by the afternoon.

There has been no official explanation for the fish kill although a red tide bloom could be to blame.

One visitor from Chicago on the beach said possibly as many as 1,000 dead fish were on the beach.

An investigation is ongoing.