Feeder Down 8/13/21
Our backyard bird feeder is a popular and crowded gathering place, not only for birds, but also for back yard critters who feed on the black oil sunflowers that fall below. The activity on and under the feeder also provides entertainment for Obie, our cat.
Unfortunately, a mysterious disease has affected song birds in the mid-Atlantic states causing crusty swollen eyes, blindness, shaking, non-responsiveness and death. The symptoms are similar to those caused by the Mycoplasma gallisepticum bacterial outbreak in the 1990s that affected house finches. But the cause of this year's infections has not yet been identified.
So, the feeder came down and the bird bath was emptied until today when the the PA Game Commission lifted that recommendation. The exact cause of the outbreak has not been identified, but a large number of possible causes, such as, Salmonella and Chlamydia (bacteria); avian influenza virus, West Nile virus, and common pesticides and herbicides have been eliminated. The search for a cause goes on. Meanwhile, the outbreak has subsided making it safe to feed birds again.
Finches and cardinals have been the most common birds at our feeder and bird bath (see my 6/29/21 blog entry).
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