Dead and sick birds have turned up at several spots around Mount Pleasant over the past week, and town officials still don't know why. The Mount Pleasant Police Department has fielded a string of worried calls since Oct. 18, with reports coming from The Meridian, Park West and Watermark Drive.
Officials confirmed the pattern of sightings but stopped short of pinning a cause on it, according to the Post and Courier. The newspaper reported that dead or sick birds have been discovered across town in the past week, and that the police department has received several concerning calls about the birds since Oct. 18. One of those calls came the morning of Oct. 20 from The Meridian, where a resident had already flagged trouble days earlier.
A person identifying as a Meridian resident posted on Facebook on Oct. 13 that they had seen four dead geese in a pond near their home days before, along with another goose that appeared visibly distressed and sick. The South Carolina Department of Natural Resources has since coordinated sending deceased birds out for testing, per the same report, though Mount Pleasant has not confirmed whether avian influenza is responsible for the local cases.
Town Says It's Still Watching Closely
Mount Pleasant officials said they intend to keep tracking the situation and will share updates as more information comes in, the Post and Courier reported. For now, the cause behind the dead and sick birds across town remains an open question, with testing results still pending.
The uncertainty in Mount Pleasant comes as a similar — and more clearly identified — situation has unfolded just across the water. Several dead geese and ducks turned up around North Charleston's Quarterman's Pond, with the Post and Courier dating the discovery to Oct. 19, while South Carolina Public Radio reported the dead waterfowl were found Oct. 20. Either way, the North Charleston Police Department identified avian influenza as the suspected cause of those deaths, a determination Mount Pleasant has not made for its own birds.
North Charleston's Pond Cleanup Offers a Preview
North Charleston Animal Control has collected roughly 10 to 12 birds from Quarterman's Pond since the previous Friday, according to Live 5 News. The city issued a public health notice after the birds were retrieved, and officials there said they would continue monitoring the situation and share additional information as it becomes available, the station reported.
Risk to pets appears limited so far. While the risk to dogs is considered low, the virus can affect other animals and, in some cases, humans, North Charleston officials said, according to ABC News 4. The outlet also noted that with seasonal bird migration underway, cases of avian influenza can increase.
What Officials Want Residents to Know
State and federal agencies describe avian influenza as a disease that naturally lives and reproduces in migratory wild birds, which serve as the primary source of transmission for various strains, according to the South Carolina Department of Public Health. The U.S. Department of Agriculture's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service notes that wild birds can carry highly pathogenic avian influenza to new areas while migrating, sometimes without showing any signs of illness themselves, potentially exposing domestic poultry along the way.
Residents who come across sick or dead poultry are urged not to handle the birds themselves. South Carolina residents can report sick or dead poultry to Clemson University's Livestock Poultry Health Division by calling 803-788-2260 or by filling out the division's online report form.
