# Do I have to report the dead bird on my back deck? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [July 18, 2004, 9:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-i-have-to-report-the-dead-bird-on-my-back-deck/255721 "2004-07-18T21:20:13Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 9\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![vivalostwages](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/d07c76/32.png) [@vivalostwages](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/vivalostwages)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2004, 11:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-i-have-to-report-the-dead-bird-on-my-back-deck/255721/21 "2004-07-24T23:02:51Z")
I only wish it were window-slamming or predators or some other “normal” death. To have well-fed birds dying in trees and dropping dead in the yard is something we’ve never seen around here before. And it’s eerie not to hear anything more than one mockingbird and the occasional lucky sparrow. The crows can’t come along to scavenge anything because…well, they’ve nearly all perished. ---
**Author:** ![brachyrhynchos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/brachyrhynchos/32/376_2.png) [@brachyrhynchos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/brachyrhynchos)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2004, 4:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-i-have-to-report-the-dead-bird-on-my-back-deck/255721/22 "2004-07-25T04:00:37Z")
A 57-year old man recently died in Orange County, CA from West Nile. Please, report dead birds to your local health department or vector control district. They might test only dead crows, but here in New Jersey, we’re taking any dead bird report and are starting to test Blue Jays as well. Other areas might be testing a variety of birds, so it’s best to find out which species your state is interested in. Also, Millicent Eidson in NY found a decent correlation between dead crow reporting and percentage of dead crows tested that were positive for West Nile, so if your state doesn’t take the bird for testing, that doesn’t mean the report is not worth anything to them. If you find a bird, you can put it in a plastic bag (invert the bag over your hand and pick up the bird using the bag) and place it in a cool spot. Don’t freeze it. Then call. Here’s Orange County’s Vector Control District’s [page for reporting.](http://www.ocvcd.org/vectors/wnv/wnvcontacts.htm) These folks are good - I know them. We wrote a paper together on one of the techniques they (and we here at Rutgers) use to detect exposure. And don’t panic! West Nile, for the most of us, produces mild, if any symptoms. For a few, however, the results can be devastating. But a few simple steps will markedly reduce your chances of exposure: use a DEET compound (25 - 30%), wear long-sleeved garments and long pants, minimize mosquito-breeding habitat, and call your local mosquito abatement program if necessary. They need to know if there is a problem with mosquitoes in order to map their breeding habitats (and this can change from year to year, if say, a neighbor forgets about a kiddy pool in the backyard). And report dead birds - that’s a critical part of surveillance. I’ve taken these simple precautions and I have not been exposed to the virus despite catching and bleeding birds to test for West Nile for the past 5 years. ---
**Author:** ![DeVena](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/dec6dc/32.png) [@DeVena](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DeVena)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2004, 4:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-i-have-to-report-the-dead-bird-on-my-back-deck/255721/23 "2004-07-25T04:08:52Z")
Report it to your public health or animal control departments. If birds have already tested positive for West Nile in your neighborhood, they will thank you kindly but will not test your bird. Proper disposal is like \*\*vivalostwages \*\* described above: using gloves and a shovel, place the dead bird in a thick, black, plastic garbage bag, tie it tightly closed and place in your garbage can for pick-up. Never touch with your bare hands. ---
**Author:** ![Musicat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/musicat/32/20189_2.png) [@Musicat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Musicat)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2004, 4:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-i-have-to-report-the-dead-bird-on-my-back-deck/255721/24 "2004-07-27T04:28:55Z")
> [@vivalostwages](#): > > You might have missed other portions of this thread. We’re talking here about hundreds or thousands of birds dropping dead from West Nile Virus, and we are asked to report it so the state can track the spread of it. I sure must have missed it. I can’t even find it. Hundreds? The OP said “a dead bird,” which sounds like “one” to me. Where are the other 99+ in this thread? Birds hit the glass on my picture windows facing the lake all the time. Usually they are briefly stunned, sometimes they die. Not all leave obvious squish marks. Stupid birds. Animals die natural deaths, too. Unlike humans, they don’t call the undertaker; they lie where they die. Unless your lawn is filling up with them or unless the local health dudes have requested a birdly sample, I’d say either dispose of it or let some scavenger do it for you. ---
**Author:** ![chique](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/4491bb/32.png) [@chique](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chique)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2004, 7:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-i-have-to-report-the-dead-bird-on-my-back-deck/255721/25 "2004-07-27T07:03:02Z")
> [@Musicat](#): > > … unless the local health dudes have requested a birdly sample, I’d say either dispose of it or let some scavenger do it for you. Yes, well. Your local health dudes have a [hotline](http://www.dhfs.state.wi.us/dph_bcd/westnilevirus/) set up for you to report dead birds. Way down on the bottom of the page. 1-800-433-1610 if you missed it. ---
**Author:** ![olefin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/d78d45/32.png) [@olefin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/olefin)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2004, 1:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-i-have-to-report-the-dead-bird-on-my-back-deck/255721/26 "2004-07-27T13:56:53Z")
> [@Musicat](#): > > Birds hit the glass on my picture windows facing the lake all the time. Usually they are briefly stunned, sometimes they die. Not all leave obvious squish marks. Stupid birds. > > Animals die natural deaths, too. Unlike humans, they don’t call the undertaker; they lie where they die. Unless your lawn is filling up with them or unless the local health dudes have requested a birdly sample, I’d say either dispose of it or let some scavenger do it for you. I agree, we also live on the lake and with 5 very large windows it would be silly to call about every dead bird we find on our deck. ---
**Author:** ![YEP](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/43a26b/32.png) [@YEP](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/YEP)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2004, 4:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-i-have-to-report-the-dead-bird-on-my-back-deck/255721/27 "2004-07-27T16:25:15Z")
I don’t think any Hampton Roads, VA localities are currently collecting dead birds at this time. You can call the VA Mosquito Control, I’ll email the number if you need it. Though, I doubt they’ll take it. In the past they only collected, jays, crows and birds of raptor. The bird also has to be dead less than 48 hours. I still wouldn’t worry VB Mosq control has several sentinel flocks of chickens that a regularly test for local arboviruses. ---
**Author:** ![YEP](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/43a26b/32.png) [@YEP](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/YEP)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2004, 4:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-i-have-to-report-the-dead-bird-on-my-back-deck/255721/28 "2004-07-27T16:27:24Z")
I meant you can call the Virginia Beach Mosquito Control. Sorry. ---
**Author:** ![N9IWP](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/n9iwp/32/3154_2.png) [@N9IWP](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/N9IWP)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2004, 5:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-i-have-to-report-the-dead-bird-on-my-back-deck/255721/29 "2004-07-27T17:30:05Z")
According to [http://www.dhfs.state.wi.us/dph\_bcd/westnilevirus/Surveillance.htm#BirdPlan](http://www.dhfs.state.wi.us/dph_bcd/westnilevirus/Surveillance.htm#BirdPlan) Wisconsin is only interested in dead Crows, Blue jays, and Ravens. Your state may vary. Brian [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-i-have-to-report-the-dead-bird-on-my-back-deck/255721.md?page=1)