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In a bizarre incident believed to be caused by pesticide
poisoning, hundreds of cranes have been spotted dead at a village in the Indian
state of Punjab. The Pakki Tibbi village in the Muktsar district of Punjab
has raised many eyebrows with scores of has found falling dead for mysterious
reason.
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| Dead cranes at the Pakki Tibbi village in Punjab, India |
The water logged areas in the village have turned out to be
a favorite place for the birds at least for the last three years. According to
villagers, the cranes had made colonies on the Kikar trees in the area but have
been showing high rates of mortality recently.
The wild life officials who visited the spots were not able
to find out the exact cause of the mysterious death of the birds. However,
water contamination is suspected as the cause of death. On condition of
anonymity, a wildlife official said that authorities suspect that the water logged area
near the crane colonies have been poisoned due to high levels of pesticide
presence.
They have taken samples from the dead
cranes and have taken some of them for a postmortem to give a detailed report
on the cause of death.
Intentional poisoning or bio indication?
Since reports indicate that the villagers were not in favor
of the bird colonies due to the foul smell, a chance of intended poisoning cannot
be completely over ruled.
However, certain environmental groups are considering the death
of the cranes as a bio-indication of the unhealthy environment in the village. According
to reports, the incidence of cancer is highest among the villagers and the
death of cranes points towards unhealthy elements in the environment, possibly
in the water which has caused illness in the village and death to the birds.
The postmortem reports are expected to solve the mystery of the
bird deaths.
Update:
September 4, 2012 11.21 am
According to an official report from the Punjab wildlife department, the postmortem of the dead cranes at the Pakki Tibbi village has revealed that starvation and overcrowding has killed the birds. Hundreds of birds used to perch on four tress and the overcrowding resulted in fighting for food, says the report. The report points out that worm infestation also caused the death of the birds since worms werer recovered from the stomach of many dead cranes.
A senior wildlife official has ruled out the rumour that there were migratory birds among the dead cranes. According to him, the worm infestation has reduced the immunity of the birds leading to their death.
However, environmentalists and experts have cried foul on the findings of the report. According to experts cranes usually move on to find new places to make colonies if they face acute food shortage. "The report is an attempt to cover up the pollution of the water body by local industries", said a green activist in an online comment.
Update:
September 4, 2012 11.21 am
According to an official report from the Punjab wildlife department, the postmortem of the dead cranes at the Pakki Tibbi village has revealed that starvation and overcrowding has killed the birds. Hundreds of birds used to perch on four tress and the overcrowding resulted in fighting for food, says the report. The report points out that worm infestation also caused the death of the birds since worms werer recovered from the stomach of many dead cranes.
A senior wildlife official has ruled out the rumour that there were migratory birds among the dead cranes. According to him, the worm infestation has reduced the immunity of the birds leading to their death.
However, environmentalists and experts have cried foul on the findings of the report. According to experts cranes usually move on to find new places to make colonies if they face acute food shortage. "The report is an attempt to cover up the pollution of the water body by local industries", said a green activist in an online comment.
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