December 18, 2006

Moldy grain, not bird flu, killed Idaho ducks
 

Moldy grain, not bird flu, caused a large mallard duck die-off in Idaho, a US Department of Agriculture spokeswoman said Friday.

Tests conducted at the National Wildlife Health Centre, which is operated by the US Geological Survey, found no bird flu, said a USDA spokeswoman.

Instead, the birds were sickened by eating mold on corn, she said. Mold produces a toxin that can sicken wildlife when ingested.

As many as 2,500 mallard ducks died along a southeastern Idaho creek bed, state officials have said. The ducks mysteriously began dying last week around Land Springs Creek, about 180 miles southeast of Boise.

Mark Drew, a wildlife veterinarian with the state Department of Agriculture told The Associated Press earlier this week the ducks likely were exposed to a single contamination source and gathered at the creek, their mutual roosting point, to die.

State officials had said since the investigation into the die-off began that bird flu was unlikely to be the cause.