An estimated one million fish have turned up dead in a Southern California marina.

The carpet of slivery fish created a floating feast for pelicans, gulls and other sea life but a stinky mess for harbour authorities, which estimated will cost thousands of pounds to clean up.

Authorities said there iswww.googl also a layer of up to 1.5 feet of dead fish at the bottom of King Harbour Marina on the Los Angeles County coast.

California Fish and Game officials said the fish were sardines that apparently depleted the water of oxygen and suffocated.

All indications are that "this is unusual but a naturally occurring event," said Andrew Hughan, a Fish and Game spokesman at the scene.The die-off was unusual but not unprecedented, he added.