Hundreds of migratory birds fell from the sky and several died in Mexico’s Cuauhtémoc city. The incident was caught on a security camera, wherein a large flock of yellow-headed blackbirds can be seen plummeting from the sky and some of them fly upwards after descending low with many falling dead.
According to Mexican newspaper El Heraldo de Chihuahua, many locals spotted several yellow-headed blackbirds lying dead on roads and sidewalks of Cuauhtémoc on February 7, 2022.
The newspaper added that a veterinarian suggested blame for the incident could lie with high levels of pollution, driven by the use of wood-burning heaters, agrochemicals, and cold weather in the area. However, another suggestion was that the birds were electrocuted while resting on power lines.
Flock of birds suddenly drops from the sky, leaving hundreds of dead birds on the ground. This happened in Chihuahua, México. pic.twitter.com/HfP4iUARCf
— David Wolf (@DavidWolf777) February 12, 2022
On the other hand, Dr Richard Broughton, an ecologist with the UK Centre for Ecology & Hydrology, said that although he could not see a raptor in the footage, he was 99% sure it was caused by a predatory bird, The Guardian reported.
A predator could have made the birds swirl tightly and driven them towards the ground, with higher birds forcing lower ones to crash into the buildings or the ground. The birds tend to breed farther north, in the US and Canada, and migrate south for winter in Mexico.