Experts Predict More Bird Die-Offs at Salton Sea

The die-off at the Salton Sea in Imperial County, which killed 14,000 to 20,000 birds and thousands of fish, has ended, but there will be more such incidents until the sea’s chronic problems are corrected, scientists said Thursday.

An outbreak of avian botulism killed birds of 64 species between mid-August and mid-November. The die-off of fish occurred during the same period.

“I expect continuing outbreaks of disease in the Salton Sea,” said Milt Friend, director of the National Wildlife Health Center in Madison, Wis.

Among the dead birds were 1,125 brown pelicans, an endangered species. Although there have been other die-offs at the Salton Sea, the outbreak was unique because of the large number of endangered birds killed and the discovery of a little-understood link between the fish and bird deaths.

Frank Shipley, director of the privately run Northwest Biological Science Center in Seattle, said more studies need to be done on the unusual ecosystem of the Salton Sea, which serves as a sump for pesticide-laden agricultural runoff and a terminus for two polluted rivers.