28th Jan - Over 200 pelicans have washed up dead on North Carolina beach

Topsail Beach, NC – “Preliminary necropsies by the University of Georgia on some of the more than 200 Brown Pelicans that have washed up on the shores of Topsail Beach on the coast of southeastern North Carolina are inconclusive and do not yet support concerns that foul play was responsible. Complete toxicology and pathology reports are expected to be available soon. A taskforce including officials from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, as well as state officials, has been formed and has been meeting to investigate the deaths, but so far has not determined a cause. The first dead birds began washing up on shore in November. “Mass bird deaths such as this are certainly troubling and need to be investigated, but they are not especially rare. According to the U.S. Geological Survey, about 160 mass wildlife death events are recorded in the U.S. each year. Sometimes they are weather related and sometimes they are caused by pollution, parasites or diseases, but they frequently have a human component,” said Dr. Moira McKernan, Director of the Bird Pesticide Program with American Bird Conservancy, the nation’s leading bird conservation organization. While local reports describe injuries to the pelicans such as broken beaks and gashes on the wings, local officials are quick to point out that such damage is consistent with post mortem scavenging by crabs or other animals, either in the water or onshore, and need not indicate deliberate wounding as a cause of death. The otherwise good physical condition of the birds suggests they were actively feeding immediately prior to the time of death. Reports indicate that the stomach contents of the birds was also normal.” -Surfbird News