US - More bird death: Dozens of dead birds found in northwest New Mexico

US - More bird death: Dozens of dead birds found in northwest New Mexico

The Republic
Thu, 15 Dec 2011 13:03 CST

A strange sight in Bloomfield where 40 to 50 dead birds were found along U.S. 64.

Some of the black and speckled birds were lying on their backs with their small feet sticking up in the air, and at least one was missing its head.

The Daily-Times reports about 30 dead birds were north of the highway and about 20 additional piles of flattened feathers were on the highway.

Wildlife biologist John Kendall with the Bureau of Land Management investigated the cluster.

He thinks they likely roosted in shrubs north of the highway Wednesday night and died when they flew into the side of a large truck driving the highway late Wednesday or early Thursday.

It's also unlikely the birds died from environmental causes because they were so close together when they died.