This may just be a dumb question, but where are all the dead birds out there? During migration seasons, and the spring and summer, I see huge flocks of them flying everywhere. What I was wondering was, if all these birds are flying about, what happens to them when they die? Do they just drop out of the air like rocks? I doubt it, since there aren’t dead ones laying around everywhere. But taking into account the ones you see that got hit by cars or eaten by cats, where are the rest of em? Logically, since there are so many, a fairly large number should be dying each day, yet there aren’t dead birds everywhere. Could it be that there’s some secret “Bird burial ground?” Doubtful, but hey, I can’t come up with anything better. Anybody know?
There is indeed a Bird Burial Ground; it’s called an “ant”.
Quite seriously, given the vast number of small scavengers out there (everything from bacteria to bugs[sup]1[/sup]), a dead bird (or dead anything that once moved) doesn’t last very long, particularly if it dies anywhere that’s less void of life than your average city alley. Cecil did a column awhile back on Where are all the dead pigeons?; substitue any other kind of bird for “pigeon” and you basically get the same answer.
[sup]1[/sup]Yes, I know that honest-to-Harry bugs are not interested in carrion.
Muchas gracias, Akatsukami. (Sorry, just got done reading Coldfire’s Mexico thread, and it got me in a spanish mood). Anyway, I had a feeling that a question like that would have been covered by Cecil at some point, but I guess I missed it whilst searching. Thanks again for clearing that up.
This is good timing. I saw my first dead bird yesterday(that I hadn’t shot myself, anyway). A huge flock of some kind of bird was flying overhead. I turned around to talk to a buddy of mine, then heard a quiet little thunk beside me. Yep, a bird had dropped from the sky and was just lying there, I’m guessing, broken. I picked him up and threw him onto the grass where I’m sure some kind of scavenger got him. Didn’t stick around to see how long he lasted, though.
Where are all the dead birds? Damn good eatin’, I say! Keeps my grocery bills down… but sometimes you gotta wrassle 'em away from the cussed coyotes!
You can also read in this thread how Straight Dope Science Board member JillGat used to feed pigeons to her boa.
Now that I read my post again, I realize it doesn’t help answer the question “what happens to the dead birds”, since JillGat captured live pigeons for her snake. But at least JillGat’s story is good reading!