[mou] Chickadee Disease

[Laura Erickson]

Chickadees are very susceptible to West Nile Virus, and August is the
month with the most cases.  The disease is transmitted via mosquitoes, in
particular the kinds that breed in stagnant water in backyards, such as
bird baths, gutters, and children's toys.

Laura Erickson
Duluth, MN

Staff Ornithologist
Binoculars.com
www.birderblog.com

There is symbolic as well as actual beauty in the migration of birds. 
There is something infinitely healing in the repeated refrains of
nature--the assurance that dawn comes after night, and spring after the
winter.

			--Rachel Carson


> Yesterday, I saw a B-C Chickadee at our birdbath, feathers fluffed out,
> perched. This morning we found him dead in the bird bath. (Don't worry, I
> cleaned out the birdbath right away.) Right now, there is another one that
> appears the same at our birdbath. I also noted that the flight was not as
> strong and bouncy, like that of a regular chickadee, but more weak, flimsy
> and less direct. I am wondering what disease this is, and how is it passed
> on from one bird to another. Has anyone else seen this? I am concerned
> about my chickadees!
>
> Alyssa DeRubeis
> Golden Valley, Hennepin Co.