![]() The spread of the disease this winter could be boosted by what appears to be a food-driven migration of winter-roaming finches - an anomaly where finches and other species that generally winter in the northern forests of Canada move south and are spotted in areas in larger numbers than in normal years. “Let them forage on their own naturally there’s plenty of food sources for them to find,” Daily said. “Anywhere there’s a big gathering of birds, they can spread diseases - just like us humans.”ĭaily said there is plenty of other food sources available, even during the seemingly lean winter months. “What I have been telling people is you have to rest your feeders,” Daily said. That way, bacteria doesn’t have a chance to grow.”Ī weekly cleaning of feeders and bird baths with a solution of one part bleach to ten parts water can keep feeders clean, but Mansfield and Daily both recommended removing feeders to take away gathering spots and potential disease vectors for these birds. People have to keep their feeders dry and clean, and keep the seed dry. “At this time of year, there’s lots of dampness out there, and if the seed gets wet, they grow bacteria. Wet bird seed is part of the problem, said wildlife rehabilitator Cynthia Daily of Discovery Bay Wild Bird Rescue. “When birds flock together in large numbers at feeders, they can transmit the disease through droppings and saliva,” Mansfield said. This wintertime die-off of pine siskins - small, heavily streaked, yellow-accented finches - as well as other songbirds, is attributed to salmonellosis, a common and usually fatal bird disease caused by the salmonella bacteria, according to Fish and Wildlife Veterinarian Kristin Mansfield. Wildlife organizations from the British Columbia Wildlife Rescue Association to the Portland Audubon Society and as far south as the San Francisco Bay Area are reporting a sharp increase in the number of sick and dying pine siskins, nuthatches, chickadees and other seed-eating backyard birds.
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