Severe thunderstorm and tornado warnings issued for Twin Cities metro area

MPR News helps you turn down the noise and build shared understanding. Turn up your support for this public resource and keep trusted journalism accessible to all. 

Turn Up Your Support

(AP) - The Department of Natural Resources is reporting bird die-offs on two Minnesota lakes.

      Officials say dead and dying double-crested cormorants,
pelicans, ring-billed gulls and a great blue heron were found last
week at Minnesota Lake in Faribault County and Pigeon
Lake in Meeker County.

      DNR biologists say the dead birds included 687 cormorants and 37 pelicans.

      DNR workers discovered the dead and dying birds while banding pelicans.

Initial tests for avian influenza were negative, but officials
say the cause of the bird illness hasn't been determined yet.

      The DNR, the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the U.S. Fish
and Wildlife Service are cleaning up the sites and collecting more
samples for lab analysis.

Gallery

Managing cormorants on Leech Lake

Counting cormorants

Environmental News

DNR biologists say the dead birds, including 687 cormorants and 37 pelicans, were found in Faribault and Meeker counties.

Hundreds of cormorants found dead on 2 Minn. lakes

Go Deeper.

Like this?