38 cranes dead in Gujarat; avian flu back?

The sudden death of 38 cranes in the wetlands (salt pans) close to Victor village in Rajula range of Amreli district has raised fears of a return of the deadly bird flu virus. The matter first came to light when a bird lover informed forest officials about the death of five birds on Saturday.

Sunday saw the death of 30 more birds while a few others were found to be extremely ill. Of the ill birds, three more died taking the toll to 38. Incidentally, two eagles, believed to have feasted on the dead cranes were also found dead.

Cranes migrate to the wetlands in this part of Gujarat from Siberia during the four months of winter. The salt pans belong to GHCL, a company involved in the production of salt.

Mangubhai Thapa, a bird lover and resident of a nearby village was the first to be told about death of five birds. He said that there had been sporadic incidents of bird deaths for the last one week.
“A fortnight ago we found 15 dead birds but thought it was the handiwork of dogs. It was only when villagers informed me of the death of five birds that an alarm was raised. We informed the forest officials who sent the birds’ remains for a post-mortem,” said Thapa.