mysterious slaughter of seabirds on the beaches

At least 3,500 Bougainvillea cormorants have been found dead since May 26 on beaches in northern Chile. According to the authorities, these deaths are not linked to avian flu. The causes of the carnage remain unknown for the time being.

Hundreds of corpses of these seabirds with black and white plumage have been picked up on the beaches of Coquimbo, about 400 km north of the capital Santiago, a few meters from the many hotels, restaurants and casinos in this resort area.

There is “something happening in the sea” and who is killing these birds, which dive into the ocean to catch their prey, a local official said. Since December 2022, Chile has been hit hard by bird flu, which has already wiped out around 10% of its population of vulnerable Humboldt penguins and thousands of other birds.