Jan. 3: Hundreds of dead birds lay along the side of the Morganza Hwy. in Pointe Coupee Parish, La., about 300 miles south of Beebe, Ark., where more than 3,000 blackbirds fell from the sky three days earlier. (AP)
GEYSERVILLE, Calif. -- California wildlife officials are trying to figure out what caused the death of more than 100 birds found clustered together just off Highway 101.
The Santa Rosa Press Democrat reports that California Highway Patrol officers found the dead birds near the roadway on Saturday and called in the state Department of Fish and Game to investigate.
The officers who found the birds described them as small with brown and black feathers. They were intact and had not been shot.
The reports come as other, larger bird deaths have been reported in Arkansas, Louisiana and other states.
Scientists say mass die-offs of wildlife happen regularly, and are usually unrelated and unreported.
Get a daily look at what’s developing in science and technology throughout the world.