© Don DentonTwo crows rest on a rock near the Oak Bay Marina. A mysterious paralysis killing corvids (ravens and crows) in northern B.C. has some concerned about West Nile Virus closer to home.
A mysterious paralysis has been killing crows and ravens in northern B.C., and now some Islanders are concerned the unusual deaths could be much closer to home.
"I have noticed several dead crows on the sidewalk over the past few days," said Vancouver Island Oak Bay resident Bill Smith in a letter to the News, noting that some crows were seen struggling to walk. "I decided to Google 'dead crows' and was quite surprised what I found ... Let's hope this is not the start of a serious problem."
Scientists at the University of B.C. and residents have murmured concerns that the northern birds could be showing indications of West Nile Virus, especially as the corvids are most susceptible and often act as an early warning system. However, B.C. has not had any reports of West Nile in humans since 2010, and the province does regular testing of the mosquitoes in different regions of B.C.
Oak Bay manager of parks Chris Hyde-Lay said the district has had no official reports of dead crows this year. However, birds are typically disposed of and are not sent for testing.
Leona Green, who runs the Hillspring Wildlife Rehabilitation facility in Dawson Creek and received calls about the unusual dying corvids, says she has had dozens of reports of the paralyzed or dead birds since the end of May. While, at first, she had been instructing people to safely dispose of the birds, the increased calls in the past two weeks surprised her.
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