Where do birds die?

[zzontar]

I've always wondered... there are so many birds around here... starlings, geese, ducks, quail, robins, etc... so there must be thousands and thousands of birds that die here every year, where are they? I read once that they say when a bird dies it will get eaten by anything from maggots to coyotes, but there should always be parts that remain, like wings... I remember seeing where a bird got hit by a car, and I could see remnants of that bird on the side of the road all year, and it wasn't a big one. How about a goose? Pretty hard not to notice a dead one... I hike a lot and have never seen sign of a dead bird... ever... so where the heck do they go?

[grammafreddy]

Where's Trapp when we need him?????????

[ferri]

he's out picking up dead birds.

[Struts 'N' Stuff Auto]

When a cat catches a bird, it eats nearly everything, only the beak and a couple of feathers left which get blown away!
I am guessing the dead birds of all sizes get eaten up pretty quick by every hungry critter, and possibly some cannibals!

[BriTer]

Those that are sick head for seclusion.

[trapp]

It is true, most dead birds are quickly consumed by scavangers, coyotes, fox,hawks, owls, eagles, etc.
Very little is left after a bird meal by most scavangers, sometimes a few feathers. I have seen where wolves have grabbed a grouse in the snow, maybe a couple of feathers are left, seems they just gulp them down whole. Also observed lynx kills of both grouse and snowshoe hare, again just a few feathers or a bit of fur. Both feathers and fur can be observed in the scats of coyotes, fox, wolves, lynx, and bobcats. Wildlife biologists collect scats to determine what a predator is eating. I have observed many wolf kills of moose, after a few days there is only a bit of hair left, sometimes parts of the skull and a few of the heavier bones,unless they abandon the carcass which happens a lot.

I have a bird feeder and occasionaly a quail hits our window, most are ok, but some die. Quite often a small hawk will grab them before I go out to dispose of them. off they go to be eaten, goodness knows where.

It may surprize you if you knew the numbers of scavanger/predator species existing in or visiting the city. Many after dark.

[zzontar]

Where is this seclusion? You never see a bird drop dead on your lawn, fall out of the sky, fall out of a tree... and with the number of birds and the size of some of them, it makes me wonder...this seclusion must be a crowded place... where does a Canada goose hide, and do they all know they have one flight left to get them there?

[BriTer]

Where is this seclusion..... secluded maybe? Birds don't usually just drop out of the sky.
Ducks and geese...I had an earlier answer bu the post seems to have not posted. hmmmmm..
anyway my answer was 'ermmmmmm....uhhhhhhh.... '

[zzontar]

Where is this seclusion..... secluded maybe? Birds don't usually just drop out of the sky.

Seeing as the foliage isn't all that dense around here I still wonder where this seclusion is, they can't just all duck behind rocks while saying "shhhhh" and giggling to themselves, except ducks, who can duck anywhere, I guess... and why don't they drop out of the sky? Even healthy people have heart attacks, perhaps the answer to avoiding them is in the birds.

[ferri]

thanks trapp, i was thinking of all the crows, magpies and gulls we have downtown too. they can take care of dead stuff pretty fast too.

[BriTer]

Where is this seclusion..... secluded maybe? Birds don't usually just drop out of the sky.

Seeing as the foliage isn't all that dense around here I still wonder where this seclusion is, they can't just all duck behind rocks while saying "shhhhh" and giggling to themselves, except ducks, who can duck anywhere, I guess... and why don't they drop out of the sky? Even healthy people have heart attacks, perhaps the answer to avoiding them is in the birds.

Maybe they disappear into one of your warps in the space-time continuum.
If a healthy person dies from a heart attack, they aren't that healthy. (something was wrong)

[zzontar]

Hmmmmm BriTer, perhaps you're right... or maybe they're all space alien birds and they get beamed up to the mothership, or the mother hen ship... good point about the unhealthy healthy people... I should have thought of that... must be tired... losing all sense of... sense.

[BriTer]

Those that don't decay to nothingness or get eaten are given decent burials by their fellow woodland creatures.

[trapp]

Have a look at this: http://ask.yahoo.com/19980921.html

[zzontar]

I guess that answers it, but I'd still like to see where Canada geese, herons, or bald eagles hide... and do birds of the same flock, gaggle, or murder go to die at the same place? Anyway, I guess the bottom line is never play hide-and-seek with a bird.