More Than 1,000 Ducks Found Dead Near Oakley

BURLEY - State and federal officials are trying to determine what killed 2,500 mallard ducks along Land Creek Springs, about 15 miles southeast of Burley near the town of Oakley. The first ducks were found dead by a hunter Friday, December 8. Idaho Department of Fish and Game was notified, and conservation officers found 10 dead ducks near the spring and along the stream's edge. The symptoms don't look like avian influenza, but samples were sent to U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service laboratory in Wisconsin for testing. Officers returned to the area on December 10 to find more than 500 dead ducks. In addition to Fish and Game, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Bureau of Homeland Security, Department of Environmental Quality, Department of Agriculture, and South-Central District Health are involved in the investigation. "All responsible agencies are doing everything in their power to ascertain the cause of mortality," said David Parrish, Magic Valley regional supervisor for Fish and Game. "Tissue and water samples have been collected by local, state and federal investigators, and we are currently running tests." Idaho departments of Agriculture and Environmental Quality have sent intestinal tract and water samples to University of Idaho and Washington State University laboratories to screen for organophosphate and zinc phosphide compounds Ð both pesticides known to affect birds. "Preliminary diagnosis is a bacterial infection is the likely cause of mortality," Parrish said. "State veterinarians in Boise have found the lung tissue of the ducks to be full of white and yellowish bacterial abscesses. They also found hemorrhaging around the heart. At this point in time, however, we are not ruling out any potential cause." Signs have been posted in the area, warning hunters not to eat the waterfowl until the cause of death has been determined, Parrish said. Fish and Game also is collecting and disposing of carcasses. "We will continue to monitor the area for any additional mortality," he said. "We would appreciate the public reporting concentrations of dead waterfowl to any of the above listed agencies." For more information, contact Fish and Game at 208-324-4359. (Editors: JPEG available on request)