bird die-off

9 Stories

Bird Deaths Caused by 'Blob' Were 'Way Worse' Than Thought

Alaska seabird die-off was 'largest documented wildlife mortality event in the modern era'

(Newser) - After a marine heatwave called "the Blob" killed off large numbers of a seabird called the common murre along the West Coast between 2014 and 2016, scientists estimated that up to 1 million birds had died . But it was "way worse than we thought," US Fish and...

Die-Off of Manatees, Dolphins Baffles in Florida

Hundreds have died since last July in Indian River Lagoon; pelicans also hard-hit

(Newser) - Hundreds of manatees, dolphins, and pelicans are dying in Florida's Indian River Lagoon, and authorities don't know why. Some of the manatees—111 have perished since last July—have died so quickly, they still have food in their mouths, Wired reports; they appear to have died from shock...

Mass Penguin Die-Off in Brazil
 Mass Penguin Die-Off in Brazil
Jul 14, 2012 6:52 AM CDT

Mass Penguin Die-Off in Brazil

Veterinarians concerned as dead penguins seemed well fed, healthy

(Newser) - Wildlife experts are concerned and investigating after 512 Magellanic penguins washed up dead across 65 miles of the Brazilian coast, reports the Merco Press . Further worrying veterinarians is that the birds were all apparently in good health, well fed, and free from oil stains. Magellanic penguins are migratory, moving from...

Peru: Climate Change Behind Dead Animals?

Dead dolphins, birds could have been affected by warming waters

(Newser) - Peru may finally have an answer for the 5,000 birds and nearly 900 dolphins that have died on its northern coast: climate change. As waters warm, food supply is disrupted, says the country’s deputy environment minister. A weather expert also confirms warmer waters due to El Niño...

Peru: Steer Clear of Beach Til We Solve Animal Mystery

Government claims virus, starvation likely causes of dolphin, bird deaths

(Newser) - Peru insists that the hundreds of dead dolphins that have washed up on its coast are not related to the hundreds of dead seabirds that also recently began turning up. But no definitive cause has yet been released, three months after the government started testing the dolphins, and some are...

Ark. Blackbird Die-Off Was Deliberate

Officials say fireworks set off in roost in Beebe, Arkansas

(Newser) - The hundreds of dead blackbirds that rained down on a rural Arkansas town for the second New Year's Eve in a row weren't so much omens of the apocalypse as victims of crime, reports Fox News . The Arkansas Game and Fish Commission is blaming human interference for the...

USDA: We Poisoned Those 200 Dead Birds

Mass animal death in South Dakota has less-than-mysterious cause

(Newser) - The latest mass animal death—hundreds of dead birds found Monday in South Dakota—is no mystery, reports the Huffington Post : The US government killed them. When more than 200 starlings turned up dead, cold weather was initially suspected as the culprit. But now the USDA has admitted to poisoning...

9 More Creepy, Mysterious Animal Deaths

Giant squids, a beloved swan, and ... suicidal cows?

(Newser) - Massive animal die-offs are totally normal —but that doesn't mean they're all free of mystery. On the heels of the Arkansas bird deaths that started it all, the Daily Beast reminds us of 9 other recent (sometimes suspicious, sometimes creepy) animal deaths:
  • John Boy Walton, the much-loved
...

Thousands of Turtle Doves Drop Dead in Italy

With strange blue stains on beaks

(Newser) - Thousands of turtle doves have fallen dead in the small town of Faenza in Italy, with some of them tragically caught in tree branches like "tiny Christmas balls." Many of the birds had a mysterious blue stain around their beaks, reports the Huffington Post quoting GeaPress . That could...

9 Stories