A "mysterious illness" is plaguing "hundreds" of birds across the southern and midwestern U.S., leaving them with "crusty eyes, swollen faces, and the inability to fly," say The Guardian and HuffPost. Reports of such afflictions began in the spring, and scientists are still unsure as to their cause.
Other potential symptoms include seizures or loss of balance — birds may even "just sit still, often kind of shaking," said Kate Slankard, a biologist of the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources.
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The U.S. Geological Survey has recommended people refrain from feeding the avian creatures "until this mortality event has concluded," as birds congregating around feeders and baths can transmit disease to one another, the Guardian writes. The USGS also recommends, for the time being, cleaning feeders and baths with a 10 percent bleach solution, and avoiding the handling of birds.
"This is truly scary," said Jim Monsma of Washington, D.C. wildlife rescue group City Wildlife to DCist last week. "And it's just every day more and more birds."
Read more at The Guardian.
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