SPRINGFIELD, Mo. -- Last weekend, we
told you about the strange sight of up to 100 dead starlings found at the
intersection of E. Erieand Fremont Ave.
On Monday, Francis Skalicky with the Missouri
Department of Conservation told KOLR10 News the nature of the starlings may
help explain what happened.
"A multiple starling death such as this may
be unique for the intersection of Fremont
and Erie in Springfield, but each year in North America it's
not that uncommon to have an event like this."
Skalicky says during the winter months, this
species of birds flies in huge flocks from hundreds to thousands for safety
reasons. He says there are several theories to why birds would suddenly die.
Starlings are ground feeders, so Skalicky says
the birds may have been feeding and were hit by a large vehicle. Or perhaps
they were startled overnight and flew into buildings or wires.
Birds killed by truck?
A big vehicle plowing through a flock of
startled starlings may have left 50 to 100 birds dying in the street over the
weekend.
That’s one theory the Missouri Department of
Conservation has come up with to explain the birds’ demise, according MDC Media
Specialist Francis Skalicky.
“A Conservation agent investigated the scene and
there’s no evidence of foul play,” Skalicky said late Monday. “He did collect
two birds and the Health Department was asked if they wanted to test them, but
they said no. We believe it was a single event at that location. It may be
unusual to see on a street within the city limits, but it’s not an uncommon
event in the wild for large numbers of starlings to die all at once.”
People began reporting the presence of a large
number of dead birds at the intersection of Fremont Avenue and Erie Street on
Saturday. Skalicky said starlings tend to form large flocks, especially in
cooler weather.
It’s possible a flock was feeding on the ground
in the area and flew into a large vehicle as it passed by, he said.
“It has happened in other places,” he said. “A
second theory is that there may have been an overnight roost disturbance, but
we don’t really know what caused them to die.
“It’s a head-scratcher.”
Because the incident happened in one small
location — and no other bird species appear to have been affected — Skalicky
said MDC isn’t planning any further inquiry into the bird deaths.
“We’re certain it was a single event, but we
don’t know for sure what that event was,” he said.
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