A type of bacteria may be responsible for the thousands of dead carp washing ashore from the Peterborough-area Kawartha Lakes, Ministry of Natural Resources officials said Tuesday.

Researchers at the Unviersity of Guelph in southwestern Ontario found flavobacterium columnare in some of the fish samples from Sturgeon Lake. The same bacteria was responsible for the death of catfish, bass and turtles along the Ottawa River last summer.

The bacteria have only turned up in Sturgeon Lake samples, and may not be the sole cause of death, officials said. Scientists are still investigating.

Ministry biologist Dan Taillon said scientists believe the bacteria will not affect humans. The optimal temperature for the bacteria to grow is about 22 C, while bacteria that cause health concerns normally need temperatures above 40 C.

"The human body is an inhospitable environment for flavobacterium columnare to grow," he said.

Taillon said people handling the fish should wear gloves and wash afterwards as a precaution. As for eating fish from the lakes, he said, cooking should kill any bacteria that may be present.

With files from the Canadian Press