Mass death of blackbirds

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Wildlife officials are trying to determine what caused more than 1000 blackbirds to die and fall from the sky over an Arkansas town.

The Arkansas Game and Fish Commission said it received reports about the dead birds falling over a 2km area, and an aerial survey indicated that no other dead birds were found outside that area.

Commission ornithologist Karen Rowe said the birds showed physical trauma, and she speculated that "the flock could have been hit by lightning or high-altitude hail".

The commission said that revellers shooting off fireworks in the area could have startled the birds from their roost and caused them to die from stress.