24 more ducks found dead in Capitol Reflecting Pool

by poolparty | July 28, 2008 at 10:55 am

1276 views | 2 Recommendations | 33 comments

24 more ducks were found dead in the Capital Reflecting Pool.

The National Park Service says it removed 24 dead ducks from the Capitol Reflecting Pool on Saturday.

Park Service spokesman Bill Line says officials believe the birds died from avian botulism. Line says the disease is not unusual among ducks, and tends to occur in the summer because it thrives in warmer water.

Two weeks ago 17 ducks were found dead in the same pool.

Two weeks ago, 17 ducks were found dead in the pool, prompting city and federal officials to order chemical and biological tests to determine how they died. Hazardous materials crews were called to the scene, and the area was blocked off for hours.The ducks' bodies from the first incident were sent off for testing. Officials found indications of Avian botulism. They said it is a naturally occurring condition that poses no risk to humans.

The duck deaths all seem to be linked to avian botulism, which is caused by bacteria.

The mysterious deaths of 24 ducks and ducklings found floating in the Washington DC Capitol Reflecting Pool recently has been traced to avian botulism, a disease caused by bacteria in hot water that is not contagious to humans, a spokesman for the National Park Service said. "Human beings are totally safe," said the spokesman, Bill Line. "There is no risk of passing avian botulism on to humans." He said that the disease was a "naturally recurring event" in hot summer weather and that it is "happening right now" to young and susceptible waterfowl in many parts of the United States.

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Rob Peters

at 13:58 on July 28th, 2008

Poor ducks. At least they're in a high profile spot that will get them some attention.

paultnature

at 19:54 on July 28th, 2008

I think its a shame that the ducks in our nations capitol have suffered such a terrible fate. We are better than that and we need to take steps to insure that more don't suffer the same fate.
The ducks in this photo which was taken at a wildlife refuge in Washington state are lucky that they live in the wild and their only worry is predators like eagles and hawks.

paultnature has contributed a photo to this story.

Era_Trendy

at 20:16 on July 28th, 2008

This photo is taken at Greece and in the picture is my dog, but i never let them to hurt the ducks!

Era_Trendy has contributed a photo to this story.

Sibad

at 22:04 on July 28th, 2008

As requested by Jeff Huang. If you'd like more from me of this duck family let me know. Simon

Sibad has contributed a photo to this story.

iharsten

at 22:08 on July 28th, 2008

One very healthy duck cruising in the Dutch Green Belt, the green heartland surrounding Alphen aan den Rijn. This one shot somewhere between Koudekerk aan de Rijn and Hoogmade, a bit east of Leiden, Sunday 27th July 2008.

iharsten has contributed a photo to this story.

duckduckgoose1

at 22:17 on July 28th, 2008

photo by C Day

duckduckgoose1 has contributed a photo to this story.

jamiehurford

at 23:07 on July 28th, 2008

This picture was taken in the UK whilst I was out playing around\ with a new camera..

jamiehurford has contributed a photo to this story.

Caoimhin1

flagged this story as Good Stuff

at 23:11 on July 28th, 2008

Steph02, I like this story. It's good stuff.

Just Jane

at 23:33 on July 28th, 2008

Taken on the Charente river in Ruffec, France

Just Jane has contributed a photo to this story.

joningic

at 00:01 on July 29th, 2008

This is very interesting and i like to enjoy.. but it will take me some time to learn and see... tx kv Jon Ingi

joningic has contributed a photo to this story.

coral.hen4800

at 00:08 on July 29th, 2008

just tock the photo

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ames2787

at 02:19 on July 29th, 2008

My pictures from ducks came from an afternoon out at my local park, Roath Park, in Cardiff which has at least 50 ducks and probably about 150 birds in total. And the ducks are very domesticated and come up to you for bread!

devyver4

at 02:22 on July 29th, 2008

What is it about? a Duck story? a Duke story?
Anyway I was walking my camera in a garden area in Australia, I saw this 4 lovely creatures walking around, I thnk; why not? and tried to get closer to them. Unfortunately the ducks kept a confort zone between me and them, but I had time..... so with time we get to know each other, and they came close enough to make that picture ( which it was closer ....). After that I had to say goodbye and good luck to my new friends, the Dukes of the garden....

devyver4 has contributed a photo to this story.

Valur Grettisson

at 02:36 on July 29th, 2008

Took this photo in Reykjavik, Iceland. The main reason was that the city council agreed to kill all Seagulls by the Reykjavik-pond two years ago.

And it wasn´t to much of a success.

Valur Grettisson has contributed a photo to this story.

keiko99

at 02:59 on July 29th, 2008

this was a duck at the Oregon zoo. ^.^

keiko99 has contributed a photo to this story.

archersbowshavebroken

at 03:06 on July 29th, 2008

I took my photos in the North-West of England, in the park pond by my home.

dcmanohar

at 03:33 on July 29th, 2008

This photo is NOT from Capitol Reflecting Pool. I shot this in Lalbagh lake at Bangalore. I was wondering why this duck is so shy to show its head! And it is standing on single leg...

dcmanohar has contributed a photo to this story.

A Duck Named Bonnie (not verified)

at 04:01 on July 29th, 2008

What a horrible fate - ducks are the most adorable creatures with such intense personalities!

I strongly urge all those of you who love ducks to never eat foie gras or eat at a restaurant that serves it - it is made by stuffing a metal tube down the necks of ducks and geese and is an abomination made by man.

joeykttn

at 04:05 on July 29th, 2008

What a shame they can't (won't?) do something to prevent this... poor ducks :(

My photos were taken in Liverpool, NY, on the edge of Onondaga Lake.

UFDC

at 04:16 on July 29th, 2008

The UFDC duck photos are from Gainesville, Florida and are available in the University Digital Collections: www.uflib.ufl.edu/ufdc

UFDC has contributed a photo to this story.

elloreecreations

at 04:45 on July 29th, 2008

This is a "coot" I saw while fishing on Lake Marion in South Carolina. They are bluish gray in color and many people mistake them for a duck. He has a white (blue tint) bill and a dark head. They usually don't let you get too close but we followed him around the sawgrass so I could get photos.

elloreecreations has contributed a photo to this story.

Pixelated SHua

at 04:46 on July 29th, 2008

this guy was basking in the sun looking for a handout on the shore of Coggshell Park in Central Ma.

Pixelated SHua has contributed a photo to this story.

cooliao78

at 05:42 on July 29th, 2008

These ducks' photo was taken at a small Lake in Simi Valley, California.

cooliao78 has contributed a photo to this story.

e36bursche

at 05:48 on July 29th, 2008

Found this duck among mallards at Jamaica Pond in Boston this winter. I had not heard about the capital reflecting pool duck deaths. Up here in Boston I hear we just had a Red Tail Hawk test + for West Nile--dont think ducks get this, or we'd be hearing more about it. My wife is an epidemiologist, have not heard any reports of bird flu...yet. Be interesting to hear what got these ducks--likely some sort of toxin/poolution--my uneducated guess.

e36bursche has contributed a photo to this story.

mandalariangirl

at 05:53 on July 29th, 2008

This photo of ducks was taken along the Potomac River near the Lincoln Memorial and reflecting pool. It's sad to think these ducks could have been among those that fell prey to the bacterial disease.

susieblackmon

at 06:22 on July 29th, 2008

We need to make more room for these beautiful creatures in the wild and stop building on and around their lakes and woods! I have a pair of mallards who seem to visit every year (assuming they are the same pair) and I have a feeling the ducklings and mother in my photograph are the result of this very pairing.