Lead Killing Birds in Esperance

Posted by Rosemary Drisdelle Mar 17, 2007

Three months after birds in Esperance Australia started dying in the thousands, scientists may have the answer to the mystery of the deaths. Toxic levels of lead have been found in some of the recently killed birds, leading to speculation that some lead may be contaminating the environment from the shipments of lead carbonate that regularly pass through the port.

An estimated 4000 birds died in Esperance in December 2006, and early January 2007, and smaller numbers have continued to succumb since - to what seemed like an invisible enemy. Now that a possible cause has been determined, people are naturally asking how the birds got the lead, and whether it’s likely that people and other species have also been affected. The investigation is ongoing.

Read about Lead Poisoning in Birds

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Dead Birds in Esperance

Source:

The Age. “Lead poisoning blamed for birds' deaths.” March 12, 2007