Conservationists are concerned after thousands of song birds were found dead in New Mexico, United States recently.
New Mexico State University Professor Martha Desmond said the reason for the deaths is a mystery, but could be due to smoke from wildfires or the recent cold weather, reports BBC.
Western bluebirds were among the thousands of birds found dead recently.
‘US Forest Service personnel are surprised at the adult birds that have died. Some of these species are year round residents and are accustomed to such [cold] weather,’ the U.S. Forest Service-Santa Fe National Forest said on Facebook.
‘The recent storm was record breaking – the precipitation we received in Jemez was very wet -heavy snow… and maybe their plumage had not yet developed for winter weather. Another theory is that the fires raging in other states may have released toxins,’ the Service added.
Some of the birds found dead included migratory warblers, swallows and bluebirds.
The New Mexico Department of Game and Fish is collecting specimens to send to the National Wildlife Health Center for further investigation.
Image credit: Wikimedia Commons
