Officials investigate deaths of 1,000 mallards

BOISE – More than 1,000 mallards have died in a bizarre cluster along a southeastern Idaho creek bed, puzzling wildlife agencies.

The Idaho Department of Fish and Game and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security were testing tissue samples Wednesday, hoping to rule out an avian flu outbreak.

The ducks mysteriously began dying last week around Land Springs Creek, near the remote town of Oakley, about 180 miles southeast of Boise.

Some migratory mallards from Canada and their local cousins were still perishing at the creek Wednesday, staggering and struggling to breathe before collapsing, said Dave Parrish, regional supervisor for Fish and Game.

“I’ve never seen anything like this in 20 years here,” he said. “There were dead mallards everywhere – in the water and on the banks. It was odd, they were in a very small area.”

The massive outbreak is vexing scientists because only mallards are dying. Golden eagles, geese, magpies, crows and other birds in the area remain healthy.

In the past, small outbreaks of botulism have killed water birds in Idaho, but the disease quickly spreads among different species.

Tissue from the ducks’ intestinal tracts and water samples from the creek were sent to the Fish and Wildlife Service national laboratory in Wisconsin, the University of Idaho and Washington State University. The agencies expect to review test results today to determine the cause of death.