At least 19 bald eagles die in Alaska

[CptSternn]

http://news.**********/s/ap/20080112...z8T809jjOs0NUE

KODIAK, Alaska - At least 19 bald eagles died Friday after gorging themselves on a truck full of fish waste outside a processing plant.
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Fifty or more eagles swarmed into the truck, whose retractable fabric cover was open, after the truck was moved outside the plant, said Brandon Saito, a biologist with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service who coordinated the recovery operation.

The birds became too soiled to fly or clean themselves, and with temperatures in the mid-teens, began to succumb to the cold. Some birds became so weak they sank into the fish slime and were crushed.

The truck's contents had to be dumped onto the floor of the Ocean Beauty Seafoods plant so the birds could be retrieved. Some tried to scatter, but since they couldn't fly, wildlife officers soon retrieved them. The eagles were then cleaned with dish soap in tubs of warm water to remove the oily slime and warm them.

The survivors were taken to a heated fish and wildlife warehouse to recover, though some were in critical condition. Saito said they would be released as soon as they were dry and strong enough.


Come on! You can't write this sort of thing. Irony does not begin to describe it even. Poetic justic maybe?

The living embodiment of the National symbol of America, dies in masse by gorging itself to death.

An animal that literally ate itself to death! It couldn't pull itself away from the food, and made a conscious choice to drown in it's own meal rather than quit eating! (Super Slurm!)

Funny! Well, kinda sad...but still VERY (IRONICALLY) FUNNY!

[Kanedawg]

Ew! Poor eagles!

[DepthsofSpace]

The irony is killing me.. Or, well, them...

Heh, I was wondering why you put a smiley face next to the topic.

[Tam Li Hua]

I'm not sure I find this ironic so much as sad. I mean, animals getting poisoned because of humanity's stupidity's not really anything new.

I feel more sad for the birds than I do a sense of chagrine over the 'irony' or 'poetic justice', which I don't think either of those things really fits here. It's poetic, but I'm not sure it's justice. Justice would be more like if all the malls in America spontaneously combusted.

[Lapin]

Hey...I like my mall. It has this great movie theater and a giant bookstore. (And, on a shallower note, a Charlotte Russe and an Off-Broadway Shoes)

Anyway, on topic, yes, as someone who works in theater, I see the grand irony and the poetic justice. As someone who generally like animals, I'm upset. And finally, as someone who thinks people are pretty incompetent, I'm really, really not surprised.

Sternn, where do you find this stuff?

[How Low Can You Go Moe]

It's no tragedy. I went to see those assholes at the zoo. The avian symbol of the United States was staring into space with its stupid mouth open.

Here's a ponderable: How come animals always manage to die in the most creative ways? You'll never see a human sinking into fishslime.

[Corpsey]

Edit that statement. Humans are animals and find more appalling methods to kill themselves and each other just immersing themselves underneath rotting flesh, and if you say that's impossible, some dumb fuck will prove it otherwise.

As an ornithologist and an avid bird lover, I am quite annoyed that someone was stupid enough to allow this to happen to an amazing creature. Anyone who has been to a beach or gone fishing around seagulls could guess as to what could have happened.

[dark_dragon_of_ice]

Originally Posted by Corpsey

Edit that statement. Humans are animals and find more appalling methods to kill themselves and each other just immersing themselves underneath rotting flesh, and if you say that's impossible, some dumb fuck will prove it otherwise.

As an ornithologist and an avid bird lover, I am quite annoyed that someone was stupid enough to allow this to happen to an amazing creature. Anyone who has been to a beach or gone fishing around seagulls could guess as to what could have happened.

I'm annoyed that they killed off of lots the Magpie population in wellington. Magpies have the intelligence levels of some apes.

[Corpsey]

They're also introduced pests; they enjoy killing off native wildlife and take up other niches inhabited but Native birds. The moment I see a magpie dive-bombing a Tui I bust out my sling-shot and aim true. I loathe magpies in New Zealand with a passion. They may have similar intelligence (proof of intelligence/statistics or comparisons please) of apes but they are in abundance and are killing off kiwiana, and I much prefer the chorus of a Tui than the warble of a magpie right before it tries to smack into my skull.

[dark_dragon_of_ice]

To what purpose should we save native wild life that shows itself as ether too stupid slow..or the mixture of both and therefore be considered an easy meal by more adaptable creatures.

[gothicusmaximus]

Originally Posted by How Low Can You Go Moe

Here's a ponderable: How come animals always manage to die in the most creative ways? You'll never see a human sinking into fishslime.

Yeah, but you'll never see a bald eagle decapitate itself with a homemade guillotine.

[Kanedawg]

BIRD FIGHT!! Vienneze naturalist, Konrad Lorenz, argued that corvids, (Crows, ravens, magpies, starlings, etc.) were the most intelligent order of birds; more intelligent than raptors. I like them, have rescued crows and starlings, and feed crows sometimes, although they do tend to be aggressive and adaptable and therefore potentially merciless to other species. Not sure if there's a point there but at least most of us care about animals generally. As for the rest.... GRRRRRRRRRRRRRR!!!!

[How Low Can You Go Moe]

Originally Posted by gothicusmaximus

Yeah, but you'll never see a bald eagle decapitate itself with a homemade guillotine.

That's true. However, I do know a bald eagle who decapitated someone else with a homemade guillotine. The fuzz never pieced that one together...

[Kanedawg]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flying_guillotine_(weapon)

[dark_dragon_of_ice]

Any way the effects of the magpie are very small compared of that of mammals..And we also had a native raven thats now extinct so maybe the magpie is in a niche the Tui took from the raven.
Magpies are aggressive around their nests and territory..sort of like humans.

[Kanedawg]

Yeah. As you might know, with only slight variations, crows occupy every ecosystem on the planet. While I understand being concerned over more fragile species, I kind of admire the more adaptable and rugged ones, too.

[gothicusmaximus]

Originally Posted by How Low Can You Go Moe

That's true. However, I do know a bald eagle who decapitated someone else with a homemade guillotine. The fuzz never pieced that one together...

And let me guess- you weren't able to testify at the trial because ghosts are inadmissible as witnesses. Prejudice against the undead inhibiting the process of the law once again.

[Signe]

This is absolutely horrible. Birds dying. That is so extremely sad. I love animals. I hate my grandfather, because we sold him a cat a few years ago and well, he had it put to sleep, because it got ill, but that was just as I was released from the psychiatric clinic, so he did not want to bother anybody with the bad news, because of my mental illness, so I just found out. Animals are so precious to me. I do not eat anything that comes from animals and there is nothing funny about cute birdies dying for fuck sake!

[dark_dragon_of_ice]

Originally Posted by Signe

This is absolutely horrible. Birds dying. That is so extremely sad. I love animals. I hate my grandfather, because we sold him a cat a few years ago and well, he had it put to sleep, because it got ill, but that was just as I was released from the psychiatric clinic, so he did not want to bother anybody with the bad news, because of my mental illness, so I just found out. Animals are so precious to me. I do not eat anything that comes from animals and there is nothing funny about cute birdies dying for fuck sake!

Do you know that humans are animals as well.

[Kanedawg]

Does that mean that we shouldn't eat them? Jest! I agree with you, Signe.

[IsolatedReptile]

To quote Maddox, for every one you don't eat I'll eat two.

[Kanedawg]

As I like to say they're not just for breakfast anymore. :^)

[How Low Can You Go Moe]

Originally Posted by gothicusmaximus

And let me guess- you weren't able to testify at the trial because ghosts are inadmissible as witnesses. Prejudice against the undead inhibiting the process of the law once again.

I hear ya, brother. Not that I'm a snitch or anything, it's just that even a ghost doesn't want eagles on his bad side. Brrrr...

Seriously, though, with my testimony, that bird woulda fried.

[CptSternn]

Magpies are common here in Ireland. They are brilliant birds. They grow to be almost two foot long, and are quite large. On top of this, they have a habit of stealing shiny things for their nests.

My mate works on cars, and we used to watch magpies fly down and swipe random screws, chunks of metal, and other bits and bobs that were left out around the area where he works on the cars.

At my in-laws house, I used to watch magpies steal spoons in the back garden almost weekly. They would take a spoon outside to use to get the food from the dog food can. If they left it outside on the small tabele beside the dog pen, you can bet a magpie would swoop down in the next 24 hours and carry off the spoon.

They are cool like that.

They have even tried to steal my wife's dresses off the clothes line - black ones with shiny metal bits always become a target. Luckily, they aren't as adept with dragging off a dress that is clipped tight on a clothes line.

[Beneath the Shadows]

Sternn, you would find the death of anything attributed to the United States amusing.