Is The Recent Slew Of Wildlife Deaths Cause For Concern?

A sudden spat of wildlife deaths has become a cause of concern for people all across the globe. It all began on New Year's Eve when between 4,000-5,000 Red-winged Blackbirds plummeted to their deaths in a one mile-radius in the small town of Beebe, Arkansas.

While the officials were still trying to pinpoint the reason, another 500 dead Blackbirds were found several hundred miles away, on a quarter-mile stretch of highway in Baton Rouge, Louisiana

Then came the fish - With 100,000 Freshwater Drums washing up on the shores of the nearby Arkansas River and an estimated 2 million small dead fish discovered in Maryland's Chesapeake Bay.

And, the incidents are not just limited to the USA - The coastal towns of Brazil have seen 100 tons of dead fish since December 30th, while the United Kingdom reported 40,000 dead Velvet Swimming crabs on the shores of Kent, and beachgoers in Little Bayand Waikawau Bay, New Zealand, discovered a carpet of dead Snapper fish floating in the water.

While the size and frequency of these wildlife deaths may sound alarming and evoke a doomsday scenario, experts believe there may be a logical explanation for each incident.

The birds may have been victims of lightning, high altitude hail or even fireworks in the case of Beebe. As for the fish, hazardous waste has been ruled out, since only a couple of species seem to effected. Instead, experts believe that it is largely to do with the unusually cold temperatures and scarcity of food.

Moreover, scientists maintain that mass wildlife deaths are not entirely uncommon - They have occurred before, just not in so many different places simultaneously. We hope that we will get some answers when laboratory test results from the carcasses are released and, that there will be no further incidents.

Sources: nydailynews,washingtonpost.com, carloz.newsvine.com, theweek.com