Bird deaths in Santa Cruz continue to dumbfound experts
SANTA CRUZ -- Preliminary lab tests have determined that a pesticide sprayed to control the light brown apple moth is not related to a mystery spill that has killed or sickened at least 115 seabirds, a state Fish and Game official said Monday.
But what did cause it remained unknown Monday, as state analysts tried to match the chemical strains of the recent red tide algal bloom and other substances to material recovered from the dead birds, said Dave Jessup, a senior Fish and Game veterinarian.
Jessup said initial tests completed Monday did not show a match with the CheckMate pheromone sprayed in Monterey and Santa Cruz counties in recent weeks to upset the moth's mating habits. However, he said, further tests will be done to confirm any connection, which state agricultural officials have called unlikely, saying the spray is not harmful to animals or humans.
Necropsies on several dead birds have not yielded any answers about the substance that stripped the seabirds of their waterproofing. But Jessup said it seemed clearer Monday that the timing of the incident followed closely with the red tide algae bloom that discolored the ocean along the Monterey Bay coastline last week.
State planes spotted a plankton bloom that could have caused the red tide near Pacific Grove on Nov. 5, Jessup said. Dead and sick surf scoters, loons and other near-shore birds began appearing on Watsonville-area beaches five days later, followed by more birds on Mid-County and Monterey-area shores, Jessup said.
While marine experts do not believe the red tide was toxic, the plankton could have robbed the water of nutrients, which might contribute to bird sickness, Jessup said. Fish and Game is analyzing samples taken from the yellowish foam that crested on the rusty red tide to determine if organisms match the white substance found on the dead birds.
Although sick birds still are being recovered by beachcombers, Jessup said, the number found each day seems to be decreasing. He said he believes the sickness may have peaked over the weekend, which is when the red tide began to subside.
Sue Santos of Napa said she was visiting Marina on Sunday when she came across up to 10 sick birds on the shore. She said one of the birds reminded her of "a wet rag."
"It looked pretty bad," she said. "They were real weak, just sitting on the beach."
As of Sunday, Jessup said Fish and Game had recovered 83 live birds and 33 dead ones apparently sickened by the mystery spill. Technicians at the Fish and Game office at Long Marine Lab on Monday were washing several dozen birds recovered over the weekend.
After getting soaped up with a delicate wash, the birds were placed in soft water to see if they could stay afloat. Jessup said the rescued birds could be released by Thanksgiving Day if they successfully graduated to hard water and saltwater pools.
Fish and Game also has recorded 39 live birds and six dead ones recovered in Santa Cruz and Monterey counties from the unrelated Nov. 7 Cosco Busan cargo ship oil spill in San Francisco. Several hundred birds from all over the Bay Area that survived that incident are being treated at a rescue center in Solano County.
SANTA CRUZ -- Preliminary lab tests have determined that a pesticide sprayed to control the light brown apple moth is not related to a mystery spill that has killed or sickened at least 115 seabirds, a state Fish and Game official said Monday.
But what did cause it remained unknown Monday, as state analysts tried to match the chemical strains of the recent red tide algal bloom and other substances to material recovered from the dead birds, said Dave Jessup, a senior Fish and Game veterinarian.
Jessup said initial tests completed Monday did not show a match with the CheckMate pheromone sprayed in Monterey and Santa Cruz counties in recent weeks to upset the moth's mating habits. However, he said, further tests will be done to confirm any connection, which state agricultural officials have called unlikely, saying the spray is not harmful to animals or humans.
Necropsies on several dead birds have not yielded any answers about the substance that stripped the seabirds of their waterproofing. But Jessup said it seemed clearer Monday that the timing of the incident followed closely with the red tide algae bloom that discolored the ocean along the Monterey Bay coastline last week.
State planes spotted a plankton bloom that could have caused the red tide near Pacific Grove on Nov. 5, Jessup said. Dead and sick surf scoters, loons and other near-shore birds began appearing on Watsonville-area beaches five days later, followed by more birds on Mid-County and Monterey-area shores, Jessup said.
While marine experts do not believe the red tide was toxic, the plankton could have robbed the water of nutrients, which might contribute to bird sickness, Jessup said. Fish and Game is analyzing samples taken from the yellowish foam that crested on the rusty red tide to determine if organisms match the white substance found on the dead birds.
Although sick birds still are being recovered by beachcombers, Jessup said, the number found each day seems to be decreasing. He said he believes the sickness may have peaked over the weekend, which is when the red tide began to subside.
Sue Santos of Napa said she was visiting Marina on Sunday when she came across up to 10 sick birds on the shore. She said one of the birds reminded her of "a wet rag."
"It looked pretty bad," she said. "They were real weak, just sitting on the beach."
As of Sunday, Jessup said Fish and Game had recovered 83 live birds and 33 dead ones apparently sickened by the mystery spill. Technicians at the Fish and Game office at Long Marine Lab on Monday were washing several dozen birds recovered over the weekend.
After getting soaped up with a delicate wash, the birds were placed in soft water to see if they could stay afloat. Jessup said the rescued birds could be released by Thanksgiving Day if they successfully graduated to hard water and saltwater pools.
Fish and Game also has recorded 39 live birds and six dead ones recovered in Santa Cruz and Monterey counties from the unrelated Nov. 7 Cosco Busan cargo ship oil spill in San Francisco. Several hundred birds from all over the Bay Area that survived that incident are being treated at a rescue center in Solano County.