Dead Birds Piling Up in Queens and Brooklyn

City officials are wondering why dead birds have been found in Queens outside the Steinway Piano Factory and in a lot on South 4th in Williamsburg. WCBS 2 reported that over the past few days, 20 birds have been found outside Steinway's Long Island City factory. Authorities eading authorities to wonder if they were killed from a pesticide, all died from West Nile, or had flown into the side of the building. The Audobon's hypothesis: "Migrant birds passing through the city are getting confused by the reflection of trees on the factory's windows, and are crashing straight into the building." Which may well be. But that doesn't explain the dead birds in Williamsburg. And according to the WCBS 2 report, residents called 311 to complain about the birds over the weekend, but the FDNY only responded yesterday.

Steinway has a cool online tour of its factory.

Contact the author of this article or email tips@gothamist.com with further questions, comments or tips.

By Jen Chung in Arts and Events, News on September 27, 2006 11:22 AM

Comments [rss]

1

#14 - Yes I have. Like #15 said, it seems a bit late for them. Then again, I hardly saw them during the whole summer. Eitherway, I'd rather have mosquitos than bedbugs.

smitty

the birds I saw in park slope weren't pigeons. One was green but it wasn't one of the famous Brooklyn parrots.

Jimmie

I've noticed mosquitos in Bklyn. Shouldn't they be gone already? It's almost October!

Hunter Slaton

Has anyone in Williamsburg noticed a large number of mosquitoes lately? Like, more than in years past? Does anyone else out there in TV land have any information on Mosquitofest 2006?

IlseM

Please report your dead birds to the dept of health here:

http://www.nyc.gov/html/doh/html/wnv/wnvbird.shtml

bessie

I live on the east side of Bushwick Ave. I have probably seen over 10 dead birds (not just pigeons) over the past two months. eerie.

E. E.

I saw two dead pigeons in a park on my way to work today in Windsor Terrace.

REALITY CHECK

shopping at one or two (ignore the "a")

REALITY CHECK

Since this happened in Williamsburg, the obvious explanation is that after receiving the initial thrill of shopping at a one or two funky record stores and partying in two or three bars, they eventually got bored to death.

your mom

did anyone stop to think that maybe this was a mass suicide? you know, like a pigeon version of heaven's gate? did anyone check to see if they were wearing sneakers? if so, then case solved!

ed_Extinct

How about an investigation into the possibility that it could be Avian Influenza (Bird Flu); the next pandemic? This was the exact season scientists said it could hit the United States (beginning with the eastern sector), yet not a single blurb anywhere about it this season.

Jen

Unclear why the FDNY responded, but my guess is they were dispatched after the Queens incident started to seem creepy and someone checking the 311 logs noticed, hey, there are dead birds in Brooklyn, too!

And apparently dead squirrels were also initially reported at the scene, those the CBS 2 story didn't say anything about them - maybe the birds looked like squirrels. I was worried that this was the work of a burgeoning serial killer.

Ace

but the FDNY only responded yesterday.

- why is this the FDNY's responsibility?

koch

can you include instructions on how to kill as many pidgeons as possible using the least amount of pesticide, thank you.

Dave H.

Aw crap. A female friend called me over to her place in Gramercy two days ago to dispose of a dead pigeon that had flopped around on her patio for a few hours before kicking. Great. Now I've probably got avian flu.