Mysterious mass bird deaths have spooked residents in Arkansas, Louisiana, Alabama, South Dakota, and Kentucky in the last month.
It's not the "aflockalyptic" fallout from a secret US weapon lab as some have theorized. The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) took responsibility for hundreds of dead starlings that were found on the ground and frozen in trees in a Yankton, S.D., park on Monday.
The USDA's role in the South Dakota bird deaths puts a focus on a little-known government bird-control program that began in the 1960s under the name of Bye Bye Blackbird ... In 2009, USDA agents euthanized more than 4 million red-winged blackbirds, starlings, cowbirds, and grackles, primarily using pesticides that the government says are not harmful to pets or humans.
Carol Bannerman, a Wildlife Services spokeswoman (says) "In a lot of rural settings, people say, 'It's just birds, what's the problem?' "
Some 5 billion birds die every year across the US, most largely unnoticed. Mass deaths are not uncommon. The US Geological Service's website listed about 90 mass deaths of birds and other wildlife in the last six months of 2010.
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