At Least 19 Bald Eagles Die in Alaska
AP
Posted: 2008-01-12 16:15:16
Filed Under:
Science News
KODIAK, Alaska (Jan. 12) - At least 19 bald eagles died Friday after gorging themselves on a truck full of fish waste outside a processing plant.
Photo Gallery
Jay Barrett, AP
Bald Eagles
Suffer After Gorging
1 of 3
At least 50 bald eagles gorged themselves on fish waste they found in a truck parked outside a processing plant in Alaska. They became too wet and slimy to fly or clean themselves, and suffered when temperatures dipped into the teens. At least 19 of them died Friday. Above, some of the survivors await rescue.
Fifty or more eagles swarmed into the truck, whose retractable fabric cover was open, after the truck was moved outside the plant, said Brandon Saito, a biologist with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service who coordinated the recovery operation.
The birds became too soiled to fly or clean themselves, and with temperatures in the mid-teens, began to succumb to the cold. Some birds became so weak they sank into the fish slime and were crushed.
The truck's contents had to be dumped onto the floor of the Ocean Beauty Seafoods plant so the birds could be retrieved. Some tried to scatter, but since they couldn't fly, wildlife officers soon retrieved them. The eagles were then cleaned with dish soap in tubs of warm water to remove the oily slime and warm them.
The survivors were taken to a heated fish and wildlife warehouse to recover, though some were in critical condition. Saito said they would be released as soon as they were dry and strong enough.
The dead birds will be shipped to a U.S. Department of Interior clearinghouse, where Native American groups could apply to be given the birds or their feathers for ceremonial purposes.
Requests for interviews from Ocean Beauty officials were not returned.
Commercial fishing is the main industry in Kodiak, a city of about 6,000 on Kodiak Island on the south coast of Alaska.
Copyright 2007 The Associated Press. The information contained in the AP news report may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or otherwise distributed without the prior written authority of The Associated Press. All active hyperlinks have been inserted by AOL.
2008-01-12 15:12:55
http://news.aol.com/story/_a/at-leas...00010000000001
Nineteen Bald Eagles eat themselves to death. Way to set an example.
Reply With Quote
Originally Posted by tammietailgator
Bookmarks