Disoriented and emaciated brown pelicans are turning up in California’s suburban backyards and parking lots, far from their coastal habitats, and biologists are struggling to figure out what’s wrong with the ailing birds. The pelicans are exhibiting very strange behavior, they say. A social animal, it is rarely found alone. So it was startling to find one bewildered bird in a Kmart parking lot in Lompoc, another outside a Costco in Goleta and a third on the runway at Los Angeles International Airport. One pelican was found at an elevation of 7,200 feet in the New Mexico snow…. “Normally, they’re on piers and places where they can find fish,” said Rebecca Ryan of the Peninsula Humane Society in San Mateo, which has stabilized several sick birds. “Now they are appearing in really unusual places” [San Jose Mercury News].
Researchers first wondered in the culprit might be neurotoxin domoic acid, which is produced by microscopic algae in the coastal waters; the birds ingest the acid by eating fish that consumed the algae. But researchers say that the pelicans’ symptoms don’t match the usual pattern seen in a domoic acid outbreak. Domoic acid poisoning usually causes seizures, researchers say, and these birds have had none. The toxin also typically affects marine mammals as well as birds, and no such problems have been reported in sea lions or other mammals. Finally, most of the hundreds of ailing pelicans are thin, but birds poisoned by domoic acid are typically of good body weight [AP].
Now blood samples have been taken from a handful of the sick pelicans, and lab tests conducted by University of Southern California revealed Thursday that half of the blood samples from six pelicans showed evidence of domoic acid…. “This is indicative that domoic acid plays at least some role in this event,” said David Caron, a professor in USC’s department of biological sciences. “There may be some other larger general factors that are at play here, and domoic acid may be one added insult that puts them over the edge” [San Francisco Chronicle].
The birds aren’t suffering from lack of food, researchers say, because sardines and anchovies are currently plentiful in the coastal waters. So researchers are investigating other possibilities, like an unknown viral infection or poisoning from some different kind of pollution. One theory is that the birds may have ingested chemicals from fire retardants used widely by emergency services recently to tackle severe blazes that ravaged the state [BBC News]. The California brown pelican is on the endangered species list, although it has been making a comeback since the 1970s when the pesticide DDT weakened the birds’ eggshells and nearly drove the species to extinction.
Image: flickr / mikebaird
January 13th, 2009 at 1:10 pm
why are they passing away because of the chemical in the fire retardants?
January 13th, 2009 at 1:36 pm
where my grandma lives there are a bunch of pelicans :)
but they are not sick and confused .
but they do poop a lot . its everywhere !
January 13th, 2009 at 1:37 pm
EVERYWHERE!!!!!
January 13th, 2009 at 1:38 pm
absolutelyy
EVERRYYWWHHHHERRREEE !
January 13th, 2009 at 2:43 pm
I THINK THAT IT IS UNFAIR THAT THEY SEND THE PELICANS AWAY WHILE THERE SICK INSTEAD OF HELP CURE THEM.
January 13th, 2009 at 2:50 pm
what is wrong with the pelicans??
January 13th, 2009 at 2:54 pm
wats the good body weight for a PELICANS
January 13th, 2009 at 2:58 pm
I think we should just kill all them stupid birds.
January 13th, 2009 at 3:03 pm
Are pelicans common around this area???
January 13th, 2009 at 3:05 pm
They really not no use to us
January 13th, 2009 at 3:06 pm
are those birds even helpful in this area for us??
January 13th, 2009 at 3:09 pm
why are the pelicans very sick? Is there something that you could do to help the pelicans get better.
January 17th, 2009 at 12:56 am
Has anybody considered Morgellon’s Disease (M’s)or something akin to it. The symptoms are not inconsistent with Morgellons. Unexplained weightloss, confusion. Weakened immune system or at least weakened body systems in general as per the domoic acid being the ‘final straw’.
M’s does respond to anti-fungals, and some anti-nematoidals. M’s has fungal properties – the main one being than it lives on the areas/organs of the body that have keratin in them. Eye’s(whites of), skin, tooth enamel, nails(they become brittle and chipped).
These areas of the body may be places to start looking.
It is known that there is a fungus wiping out frogs that is spreading and moving through N.America. That may also have something to give a clue to the pelicans plight.
Janet – former Biochemist
March 21st, 2009 at 11:32 pm
The ungrammatical statements “I think we should just kill all them stupid birds” and
“They really not no use to us” were made by people who are not aware that all species are the “canaries in the coal mines”, caused by environmental factors which have the potential to effect their very selfish lives and total disregard for the balance of all nature, including human beings. It’s very unfortunate that such insensitive and uncaring people are part of our species.