https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2021/06/25/birds-get-mysterious-illness-appear-disoriented-die/5326276001/?fbclid=IwAR3Le-1a7-ONQha_avjUcMDH2vT1_QXh2MaX2Ol1mhV7lMK8QIa4wGsv9mk

Jordan MendozaUSA TODAY0:362:33

Hundreds of birds across the eastern United States have been dying from a mysterious illness, and wildlife experts aren’t sure what is causing it.

In late May, The Washington Post reported birds in the Washington, D.C., area were starting to die. Since then, six states – Ohio, Kentucky, Indiana, Maryland, Virginia and West Virginia – have reported similar instances.

Laura Kearns, a wildlife biologist with the Ohio Division of Wildlife, spoke with USA TODAY about what symptoms these birds are experiencing, what may be causing this illness and what people could do to help the birds.

“I’ve been in contact with the biologists in Indiana and Kentucky, where this is happening, and they’re reporting similar things,” Kearns said. “There are many different diagnostic labs working on this.”https://140eb824e776533f7fd15c255983909f.safeframe.googlesyndication.com/safeframe/1-0-38/html/container.html

Birds appear disoriented with bulging eyes

Kearns said not all birds have the same exact symptoms, but one thing is common: physical changes around the eyes.

“Some report crustiness around the eyes, some report like bulging or swollen eyes. And then we’ve also had reports of the eyes being kind of sunken in,” Kearns said.

She added the birds also show neurological symptoms like not being able to keep their heads up or are uncoordinated, saying, “they just kind of seem disoriented.”https://140eb824e776533f7fd15c255983909f.safeframe.googlesyndication.com/safeframe/1-0-38/html/container.html

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What type of birds affected?

The Ohio Division of Wildlife reported blue jays, common grackles, American Robins, European starlings and sparrows have been affected. The Indiana Department of Natural Resources also said Northern cardinals have been affected.

Why is this happening?

The Indiana Department of Natural Resources took samples from the sick birds and they tested negative for the avian flu and the West Nile virus. Samples were then sent to the National Wildlife Health Center. The agency said in early June it was also working alongside the University of Georgia Southeastern Cooperative Wildlife Disease Study and the University of Pennsylvania Wildlife Futures Program.Get the Coronavirus Watch newsletter in your inbox.

Stay safe and informed with updates on the spread of the coronavirusDelivery: Varies

“We are eagerly awaiting the results from them,” Kearns said.

Could cicadas be a factor?

Brian Evans, an ornithologist with the Smithsonian Migratory Bird Center in Washington, D.C., brought up the idea to the NPR that the illness began to appear around the same time the Brood X cicadas began to emerge. Experts have said eating too many cicadas can hurt a dog’s digestive system because their exoskeletons and shells are hard to digest.

Kearns acknowledged a theory birds may be eating cicadas infected with fungus that rots their bodies as ill birds have been found in areas where there are cicadas present. However, she says sick birds have also been found where there are no cicadas, so it may be something else.

What should people do?

There are multiple things people that have homes birds frequently visit can do to help. Kearns recommends people take down their bird feeders for 7-10 days, or until the mortalities stop occurring. 

The Indiana DNR says people should also clean bird feeders and baths with water and 10% bleach solution. People shouldn’t handle birds unless they are wearing disposable gloves and keep pets away from them. If someone encounters a dead bird, they should wear disposable gloves and place birds and gloves in a sealable plastic bag and throw away.

I’ve seen several pine martens up close and they all seemed to be different sizes. Those that I’ve seen in trees (in WA and in Jasper) looked about the size of the a small house cat. But, once in the Washington cascades, at a place called Kennedy Hot Springs in the Glacier Peak Wilderness Area, I was in the hot pool and one came up and peered a me as though he was checking to see where the humans were–then he ran back towards my campsite. His behavior seemed suspicious, so I went back to camp to check on my belongings. Sure enough, what looked like a large pine marten was standing up and rummaging through my pack, which I’d left leaning against a log. It seemed to me the animal was more than the average 3 lbs., since he could reach into the top of my pack while standing with his hind feet flat on the ground. Since then, all the other martens I’ve seen seemed smaller than that individual. Reading now that the old-world pine martens were sometimes larger makes me wonder if there is sometime more variance in pine marten on this continent too.

Here’s one I saw in Jasper National Park in Alberta, Canada:

https://www.all-creatures.org/aw/pinemarten.html

A well-known mama grizzly bear and one of her yearling cubs has been struck and killed by a train in Banff National Park.about 18 hours ago By: Cathy Ellis

Parks Canada suspects this is bear 130 and her two yearling cubs pictured on the third hole of the Stanley Thompson at the Banff Springs Golf Course earlier this spring. Photo courtesy of Jennifer Reimer/Parks Canada

BANFF – A well-known mama grizzly bear and one of her yearling cubs has been struck and killed by a train in Banff National Park.

The adult female, known as 130, was with her two yearlings on the Canadian Pacific Railway tracks at Mile 84.3 just west of the Banff townsite about 10 a.m.. on Thursday (June 24) when struck. One of the two cubs is alive and appears to be uninjured.

Parks Canada officials say wildlife experts, who raced to the scene when the report of the train strike came in to Banff dispatch, identified the bear as 130 based on a broken ear tag.

“The yearling that survived the incident appears to be uninjured and is moving through the area,” said David Dunbar, a spokesperson for Banff National Park.

“It is being monitored by Parks Canada staff. Precedent has shown that given its age and size, the orphaned yearling has a good chance of survival moving forward.”

There are no further details at this time on Parks Canada’s plans for this surviving young bear, whether it will be relocated to a quieter area of the park within its home range, or left alone.

On June, 3, Bear No. 130 and her cubs took down a newborn calf on the Banff Springs Golf Course, much to the surprise of a group of golfers on hole 2 of the Stanley Thompson.

“Some golfers had seen a calf run out onto the course and right behind it was one of the yearling cubs, and it nailed the calf and took it down right in front of them,” said Blair Fyten, a human-wildlife co-existence specialist with Banff National Park.

“A few seconds later, out of the bush comes mom and the other yearling, and mom grabs the calf, picks it up and heads back into the woods. Within minutes, they had pretty much eaten the calf and moved on.”

Bear No. 130, thought to be about 10 to 12 years old, emerged from the den in 2020 with three cubs in tow, but only two have been seen with her so far this spring.

In 2014, Bear 136, also known as Split Lip for his disfigured mouth, was the prime suspect in killing her previous litter of cubs.

Bear No. 130 did not hang around high-human use areas as a general rule, but it appears she was moving along on a narrow corridor on the train tracks foraging for food with her cubs.

Her home range does include the Bow Valley Parkway and the Fairhome bench, but she has been hanging around the Banff townsite this spring, including on Tunnel Mountain and the grassy greens of the Banff Springs Golf Course.

“She is a bear that hangs out a little bit around here, but more so the 1A and the Fairholme area,” Fyten said.

The premature death of bear 130 and one of her yearling cubs follows the death of bear No. 156 at the end of May in neighbouring Yoho National Park, who was struck by a vehicle on the Trans-Canada Highway near Field.

No. 156’s orphaned cubs, a male and a female, were relocated to a remote area of the backcountry within 156’s home range, which includes parts of Banff and Yoho national parks.

In Banff National Park, the death of No. 130 and one of her yearlings are the first confirmed grizzly bear mortality incidents on the railway in 2021.

Female bear 143, who had two cubs last year, was struck and killed on the train tracks between Caste Mountain and Lake Louise in September 2020. She spent most of her time in the backcountry of Banff and the adjacent Yoho and Kootenay national parks.

Grizzly bears are listed as threatened species in Alberta. Since 2000, at least 17 grizzly bears have been killed on the train tracks in Banff and Yoho national parks, which is considered a significant blow to Banff’s population of about 60 grizzlies.

Survival of female bears is considered critical to the population, given ongoing research has found that Banff’s bears reproducing more slowly than in other areas of North America because their food supply is limited in the harsh, mountain habitat.