Accepted Answer

Okay, thanks for the extra information. It's very helpful. First off, I can tell you with 99.9% confidence, it is not Bird Flu. To my knowledge, there has not yet been a confirmed case of Bird Flu in this country. They can, however, be at risk of West Nile Virus. If there is water around, there are likely to be mosquito's and that's how it is spread. West Nile can make humans sick but only rarely is it fatal but, it is deadly, and in a short period of time, to all manner of birds and fowl. Even if it is West Nile, you are not likely to contract if from the body's. You need to be bitten by a mosquito that carries it. However, it's always better to be safe than sorry so using latex gloves and dust masks when gathering them up will make good sense. The other possibility is they were somehow poisoned. Maybe something briefly contaminated the stream or it could have come from another source. That's why I asked about the proximity of neighbors. We don't like to think about it but it only takes one neighbor, disgruntled over noise, odor or anything else, to take it upon themselves to decide to poison someone's animals. The only way you are ever going to be positive about the cause of death is to have a necropsy done on at least one of the bodies. There is always a chance you can get this done by the local Health Dept. I'd urge someone to give them a call, explain the sudden and unexpected death of this many and ask them to run some tests. In case they will, you need to set aside one or two of the bodies, maybe one of each and properly store it. It cannot be frozen as that will alter the test results but it will need to be refrigerated, somehow. If they will do it, you can ask them for proper instructions but one option is to seal them inside a couple plastic trash bags and put them in an old picnic cooler. The possible treat of some kind of disease may prompt the Health Dept. to do the testing. Then if it turns out to be a poison instead, you have found the answer at no cost and you will know the next steps to take to deal with it. I hope this helps but if you need anything else, let me know. Patricia

Expert:	Patricia
Pos. Feedback:	99.9 %
Accepts:
Answered:	4/3/2008

Parrot C&onsultant

Published author, free lance bird behaviorist, adviser to the parrots at Sarasota Jungle Gardens.