The Forestry Division is investigating the deaths of a number of birds of different species at the Housing Development Corporation development, Couva. While residents suspect the birds are being poisoned, Forestry Division officials say they cannot conclusively say if that is the cause of the deaths. Yesterday, game warden Andy Singh, who is leading the investigation, visited Anand Yankaran Avenue, where most of the dead birds were found.
When the T&T Guardian visited yesterday the carcasses of birds, which included keskidees, bluejays, pigeons and blackbirds, littered the yards of homes and surrounding drains. While the T&T Guardian was there, a blackbird was seen struggling to move but within minutes it was dead. Singh collected the carcass which he said would be taken to the UWI Veterinarian School of Medicine for a necropsy (animal autopsy) and toxicology tests to show the cause of death.
Residents in the area are concerned, especially since they do not know if poison is being used to kill the birds and if it is being used safely. Yesterday avid animal lover and resident, calypsonian Sonia Francis, broke down in tears as she described finding the carcasses of birds in her yard. She said the sight of dead birds had been traumatic, especially since she has been feeding and caring for the birds since she moved into the housing settlement.
“I moved in a year ago and different types of birds were coming into the area and I started to feed them. “I would buy a set of bananas every day to feed them to make sure the birds are happy. Now all of them dying,” she sobbed as she wiped away tears. She is calling on the authorities to step in and investigate. “Yesterday when I came out, about 100 birds were dead and I saw my neighbour picking them up and putting them into garbage bags,” she said.
Another resident, who said she did not want to get involved, admitted it was worrying to find the dead birds, especially since she has a baby in the house and young children. Singh said it was an offence to kill the birds even if someone felt they were a nuisance and decided to poison them. He said the birds were protected under law and hence may not be harmed, hunted or killed.
Singh also explained that only the Forestry Division could exterminate the birds if they were deemed a nuisance and in such a case residents must report it to the nearest Forestry Division office and apply for a permit to exterminate them. Often, he said, the extermination was carried out by trained personnel from the division.