Scientists puzzled by mass deaths of seabirds along Pacific Coast

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FRANCE: Scientists have been baffled by mass deaths of seabirds, whose bodies are being found by the hundreds along the US Pacific Coast.
There have been mass deaths of small, white bellied gray birds known as Cassin’s auklets from British Columbia to San Luis Obispo, California. Experts are now concerned because they have not yet been able to identify a cause of these massive deaths.
Phillip Johnson, the executive director of the Oregon Shores Conservation Coalition, said, “To be this lengthy and geographically widespread, I think is kind of unprecedented. It’s an interesting and somewhat mysterious event.”
According to the University of Washington’s Coastal Observation and Seabird Survey Team (COASST), at least 1,200 bodies have been washed ashore since the fall. COASST also made sure that the count was of the birds that were found dead since fall. Even further north, near North Bend, other COASST volunteers have found hundreds of birds.
Ken Denton, COASST volunteer at North Bend, said, “We’ve seen a lot of common murres, but those are common. This is the most we’ve seen of something else.”
The birds appear to be starving to death so experts do not presently believe that a toxin is the problem. They also believe that the breeding season of these seas birds was more prolific and maybe the large numbers of hatchlings are fighting for the limited amount of food. Hence, some of them are dying of hunger.
University of Washington COASST executive director Julie Parrish, said, “The birds have been found mostly starved to death, perhaps as the result of an unusually prolific mating session this year. Almost every breeding pair laid an egg, and as the young birds fly south for the winter they may not all be finding the small fish and shrimp they normally feed on.”