Tuesday, January 4, 2011
Dead Birds & Fish: What's REALLY Going on in Arkansas
First it was more than 1,000 dead birds that fell in a 1-mile radius in Beebe, Arkansas that had us freaked. Dead things dropping from the sky on New Year's Day? Is it the sign of the apocalypse? Then things got really creepy. We found out more than 100,000 dead fish were found floating in the Arkansas River just days before.
Together they leave us with two choices: curl up in a corner and start rocking or figure out what the heck is causing it so we can move on with our lives. We're going with the latter. Here's what's really causing all those dead animals in Arkansas.
The government killed them:
What would a new year be without some new wacky "the government is out to get you" theories? Popping up all over the web is the phrase "Some believe that secret undercover government weapons testing is the cause of the rash of wildlife deaths there." Some do seem to believe it, but none offer up anything other than their beliefs. Maybe some facts would make us feel like these people were more than bird brains.
Fireworks killed the birds:
The bodies of the birds showed physical trauma akin to lightning or hail. But considering it was New Year's Day, Keith Stephens of the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission told CNN:
If someone was to shoot fireworks in an area where they were roosting, while they were asleep, then that could have been what caused their deaths.
If that's true, why hasn't the pyrotechnician come clean? Arkansas is a state where fireworks are legal, so he shouldn't be in any trouble.
Disease killed the fish:
Only dead drum fish died, which actually makes this easier to figure out than the birds. If there were a pollutant in the water, it should have affected everything in the river. But with only one species of floaters, the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission (boy those folks have their hands in everything these days) are calling this one for disease. Now for the big question: could the birds have snacked on the fish?
Poison killed them both:
We've already ruled it out for the fish, but what about the birds? Actually, that's a negative too. The birds' stomachs were empty. Although mine would be empty if I ate something that gave me the runs too ...
Weather killed the birds:
When in doubt, blame it on the weather. Birds don't fare so well when their coats get soaked, and there was a storm that blew through Arkansas late last week. So they could have died from exposure or been confused as heck and simply flew into the ground themselves. Only problem? The storm was pretty much gone by the time the birds started dropping like flies.
God did it all:
If it's not the government, it's got to be Him, right? Oh ye of little faith, check out the pile of Biblical quotes concerning dead critters and tell us it's not a wee bit creepy. Particularly of interest: I will sweep away the birds of the air and the fish of the sea from Zephaniah 1:3. If He's sweeping them away, does that mean He's offering to help with the clean up?
USS Enterprise Video Scandal Navy Commander Mastermind
The Navy video scandal brought about by Captain Owen Honors has garnered quite a buzz of controversy, but the Navy hasn't revealed the fate of the carrier officer yet. At this point it is unclear whether Honors, captain of the aircraft carrier USS Enterprise, will keep his position.
According to the Virginian-Pilot, Honors produced and broadcasted a series of short videos during an "XO Movie Night" meant to entertain the crew that featured "anti-gay remarks, sexual jokes, subordinates parading in drag, and sailors pretending to masturbate and shower together" for the crew.
Since an edited version of the video was released by the newspaper over the weekend, U.S. Fleet Forces Command has launched an investigation into Honor's lewd videos.
"The U.S. Navy has not made any official statements or comments on the status of Capt. Honors," a Monday morning statement said. "The investigation currently being conducted will provide the necessary information to make that decision in an informed manner."
Watch video
According to the Virginian-Pilot, Honors produced and broadcasted a series of short videos during an "XO Movie Night" meant to entertain the crew that featured "anti-gay remarks, sexual jokes, subordinates parading in drag, and sailors pretending to masturbate and shower together" for the crew.
Since an edited version of the video was released by the newspaper over the weekend, U.S. Fleet Forces Command has launched an investigation into Honor's lewd videos.
"The U.S. Navy has not made any official statements or comments on the status of Capt. Honors," a Monday morning statement said. "The investigation currently being conducted will provide the necessary information to make that decision in an informed manner."
Watch video
Monday, January 3, 2011
Bird government testing: Labs seek clues after 3,000 dead birds fall from the sky in Arkansas
LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) - Government experts are trying to solve a mystery that evoked images of the apocalypse: Why did more than 3,000 dead red-winged blackbirds tumble from the Arkansas sky shortly before midnight on New Year's Eve?
Scientists are investigating whether bad weather, fireworks or poison might have forced the birds out of the sky, or if a disoriented bird simply led the flock into the ground.
"We have a lot more questions," said Karen Rowe, an ornithologist with the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission. She said there are documented cases of birds becoming confused and plunging to earth.
Residents of the small town of Beebe, northeast of Little Rock, awoke Saturday to find thousands of dead blackbirds littering a 1.5-square-mile area. The birds inexplicably dropped dead, landing on homes, cars and lawns. Cleanup crews wore protective suits, gas masks and rubber gloves as they spent the holiday weekend gathering the carcasses.
The director of Cornell University's ornithology lab in Ithaca, N.Y., said the most likely suspect is violent weather. It's probable that thousands of birds were asleep, roosting in a single tree, when a "washing machine-type thunderstorm" sucked them up into the air, disoriented them, and even fatally soaked and chilled them.
"Bad weather can occasionally catch flocks off guard, blow them off a roost, and they get hurled up suddenly into this thundercloud," lab director John Fitzpatrick said.
Rough weather had hit the state earlier Friday, but the worst of it was already well east of Beebe by the time the birds started falling, said Chris Buonanno, a forecaster with the National Weather Service in North Little Rock.
If weather was the cause, the birds could have died in several ways, Fitzpatrick said. They could easily become disoriented - with no lights to tell them up and down - and smack into the ground. Or they could have died from exposure.
The birds' feathers keep them at a toasty 103 degrees, but "once that coat gets unnaturally wet, it's only a matter of minutes before they're done for," Fitzpatrick said.
Regardless of how they died, the birds will not be missed. Large blackbird roosts like one at Beebe can have thousands of birds that leave ankle- to knee-deep piles of droppings in places.
Nearly a decade ago, state wildlife officials fired blanks from shotguns and cannons to move a roost of thousands of blackbirds from Beebe. In recent years, many of the migratory birds returned.
Red-winged blackbirds are the among North America's most abundant birds, with somewhere between 100 million and 200 million nationwide, Fitzpatrick said. Rowe put the number of dead in Beebe at "easily 3,000."
Bird carcasses were shipped to the Arkansas Livestock and Poultry Commission and the National Wildlife Health Center in Madison, Wis. Researchers in Georgia also asked for a set of the dead birds. Test results could be back in a week.
Rowe said many of the birds suffered injuries from striking the ground, but it was not clear whether they were alive when they hit.
A few grackles and a couple of starlings were also among the dead.
Those species roost with blackbirds, particularly in winter. Tens of thousands of blackbirds can roost in a single tree. And they do not see well at night, when they usually sleep, Fitzpatrick said.
Earlier Friday, a tornado killed three people in Cincinnati, Ark., about 150 miles away. Then a couple hours before the birds died, thunderstorms also passed through parts of central Arkansas.
Lightning could have killed the birds directly or startled them to the point that they became confused. Hail also has been known to knock birds from the sky.
In 2001, lightning killed about 20 mallards at Hot Springs, and a flock of dead pelicans was found in the woods about 10 years ago, Rowe said. Lab tests showed that they, too, had been hit by lighting.
Back in 1973, hail knocked birds from the sky at Stuttgart, Ark., on the day before hunting season. Some of the birds were caught in a violent storm's updrafts and became encased in ice before falling from the sky.
Rowe and Fitzpatrick said poisoning was possible but unlikely. Rowe said birds of prey and other animals, including dogs and cats, ate several of the dead birds and suffered no ill effects.
"Every dog and cat in the neighborhood that night was able to get a fresh snack that night," Rowe said.
---
AP Science Writer Seth Borenstein contributed to this report
from Washington.
Scientists are investigating whether bad weather, fireworks or poison might have forced the birds out of the sky, or if a disoriented bird simply led the flock into the ground.
"We have a lot more questions," said Karen Rowe, an ornithologist with the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission. She said there are documented cases of birds becoming confused and plunging to earth.
Residents of the small town of Beebe, northeast of Little Rock, awoke Saturday to find thousands of dead blackbirds littering a 1.5-square-mile area. The birds inexplicably dropped dead, landing on homes, cars and lawns. Cleanup crews wore protective suits, gas masks and rubber gloves as they spent the holiday weekend gathering the carcasses.
The director of Cornell University's ornithology lab in Ithaca, N.Y., said the most likely suspect is violent weather. It's probable that thousands of birds were asleep, roosting in a single tree, when a "washing machine-type thunderstorm" sucked them up into the air, disoriented them, and even fatally soaked and chilled them.
"Bad weather can occasionally catch flocks off guard, blow them off a roost, and they get hurled up suddenly into this thundercloud," lab director John Fitzpatrick said.
Rough weather had hit the state earlier Friday, but the worst of it was already well east of Beebe by the time the birds started falling, said Chris Buonanno, a forecaster with the National Weather Service in North Little Rock.
If weather was the cause, the birds could have died in several ways, Fitzpatrick said. They could easily become disoriented - with no lights to tell them up and down - and smack into the ground. Or they could have died from exposure.
The birds' feathers keep them at a toasty 103 degrees, but "once that coat gets unnaturally wet, it's only a matter of minutes before they're done for," Fitzpatrick said.
Regardless of how they died, the birds will not be missed. Large blackbird roosts like one at Beebe can have thousands of birds that leave ankle- to knee-deep piles of droppings in places.
Nearly a decade ago, state wildlife officials fired blanks from shotguns and cannons to move a roost of thousands of blackbirds from Beebe. In recent years, many of the migratory birds returned.
Red-winged blackbirds are the among North America's most abundant birds, with somewhere between 100 million and 200 million nationwide, Fitzpatrick said. Rowe put the number of dead in Beebe at "easily 3,000."
Bird carcasses were shipped to the Arkansas Livestock and Poultry Commission and the National Wildlife Health Center in Madison, Wis. Researchers in Georgia also asked for a set of the dead birds. Test results could be back in a week.
Rowe said many of the birds suffered injuries from striking the ground, but it was not clear whether they were alive when they hit.
A few grackles and a couple of starlings were also among the dead.
Those species roost with blackbirds, particularly in winter. Tens of thousands of blackbirds can roost in a single tree. And they do not see well at night, when they usually sleep, Fitzpatrick said.
Earlier Friday, a tornado killed three people in Cincinnati, Ark., about 150 miles away. Then a couple hours before the birds died, thunderstorms also passed through parts of central Arkansas.
Lightning could have killed the birds directly or startled them to the point that they became confused. Hail also has been known to knock birds from the sky.
In 2001, lightning killed about 20 mallards at Hot Springs, and a flock of dead pelicans was found in the woods about 10 years ago, Rowe said. Lab tests showed that they, too, had been hit by lighting.
Back in 1973, hail knocked birds from the sky at Stuttgart, Ark., on the day before hunting season. Some of the birds were caught in a violent storm's updrafts and became encased in ice before falling from the sky.
Rowe and Fitzpatrick said poisoning was possible but unlikely. Rowe said birds of prey and other animals, including dogs and cats, ate several of the dead birds and suffered no ill effects.
"Every dog and cat in the neighborhood that night was able to get a fresh snack that night," Rowe said.
---
AP Science Writer Seth Borenstein contributed to this report
from Washington.
Dead Birds Fall from Sky
(Beebe, AR--) Dead Birds Fall From Arkansas Skies
Wildlife officials in Beebe, Arkansas are looking into what could have caused more than one-thousand blackbirds to fall from the sky and die.
Many witnessed an uncanny resemblance to the Hitchcock movie "The Birds."
Dozens of U.S. Environmental services crews walked between homes, climbing on people roofs with protective hazmat suits and breathing masks, picking up the birds.
The birds showed physical trauma and may have been hit by lightning or high-altitude hail.
Wildlife officials say New Year's Eve revelers shooting off fireworks in the area could have startled the birds from their roost and caused them to die from stress.
The Game and Fish Commission says poisoning does not appear to be the case and strange events similar to this have occurred across the globe -- a number of times.
Wildlife officials in Beebe, Arkansas are looking into what could have caused more than one-thousand blackbirds to fall from the sky and die.
Many witnessed an uncanny resemblance to the Hitchcock movie "The Birds."
Dozens of U.S. Environmental services crews walked between homes, climbing on people roofs with protective hazmat suits and breathing masks, picking up the birds.
The birds showed physical trauma and may have been hit by lightning or high-altitude hail.
Wildlife officials say New Year's Eve revelers shooting off fireworks in the area could have startled the birds from their roost and caused them to die from stress.
The Game and Fish Commission says poisoning does not appear to be the case and strange events similar to this have occurred across the globe -- a number of times.
Gorgon Stare Broadens UAV Surveillance
The Increment II pods will differ from Increment I, offering twice the area coverage and double the resolution by using separate EO and IR sensor balls—one of each on individual pods—being built, respectively, by BAE Systems and ITT Defense, says Mike Meermans, vice president of strategic planning at Sierra Nevada. Increment II will produce increased coverage and better resolution by packing a large number of small cameras—perhaps hundreds—into each sensor ball, he notes. Images from the Increment II EO cameras will be in color rather than black-and-white as in Increment I. Sierra Nevada is also designing Increment II with an open architecture to permit additional sensors—perhaps a synthetic aperture radar, for example—to be added to the pods, with the data they gather integrated into the Gorgon Stare video image by the onboard computer processors.
A Gorgon Stare pod set weighs substantially less than a Reaper’s 3,000-lb. payload capacity, but an MQ-9 carrying Gorgon Stare will fly unarmed because of electrical power limitations and stay aloft at 20,000-25,000 ft. for only 14-15 hr., several hours less than an armed MQ-9. Endurance is affected by drag from the pods, Marlin says.
Deptula says Gorgon Stare “changes the dynamic in terms of measuring ISR sufficiency” and is one reason he and other Air Force leaders pushed for the service to stop buying Predators, which can’t carry Gorgon Stare, as of Fiscal 2009. General Atomics Aeronautical Systems Inc. makes the Predator and Reaper. USAF’s goal has been to increase the number of daily combat air patrols (CAPS) flown by Predators and Reapers to 50 by the end of Fiscal 2011, Deptula says, and to 65 by Fiscal 2013, which would provide a maximum of 65 full-motion video images streaming at any one time from the UAVs. Fifty Reapers equipped with Gorgon Stare’s Increment II version, however, could provide hundreds of streaming images simultaneously and five times that many after stored images are processed, Deptula says. That calculation calls for rethinking the practice of measuring ISR sufficiency by counting CAPS, he argues.
“We have to get people to stop thinking about input measures—the number of platforms that are flown—and start thinking about output measures, that is, the received output from the entire system,” Deptula says. Ground troops “don’t care how many CAPS are being flown. What they care about is, are they getting increased situational awareness by what’s being flown?”
The Air Force has 53 Reapers and plans to buy 329 in all. There is no official connection between the programs, but Gorgon Stare also could be carried on a future unmanned aircraft known as Magic, an acronym for Medium-Altitude Global ISR and Communications, being designed to fly for five days at 20,000 ft. with a 1,000-lb. payload. Magic is being developed by Aurora Flight Sciences under a $4.7-million contract awarded Sept. 15 by the Air Force Research Laboratory. Aurora will use its Orion Unmanned Aerial System as the airframe for Magic.
A Gorgon Stare pod set weighs substantially less than a Reaper’s 3,000-lb. payload capacity, but an MQ-9 carrying Gorgon Stare will fly unarmed because of electrical power limitations and stay aloft at 20,000-25,000 ft. for only 14-15 hr., several hours less than an armed MQ-9. Endurance is affected by drag from the pods, Marlin says.
Deptula says Gorgon Stare “changes the dynamic in terms of measuring ISR sufficiency” and is one reason he and other Air Force leaders pushed for the service to stop buying Predators, which can’t carry Gorgon Stare, as of Fiscal 2009. General Atomics Aeronautical Systems Inc. makes the Predator and Reaper. USAF’s goal has been to increase the number of daily combat air patrols (CAPS) flown by Predators and Reapers to 50 by the end of Fiscal 2011, Deptula says, and to 65 by Fiscal 2013, which would provide a maximum of 65 full-motion video images streaming at any one time from the UAVs. Fifty Reapers equipped with Gorgon Stare’s Increment II version, however, could provide hundreds of streaming images simultaneously and five times that many after stored images are processed, Deptula says. That calculation calls for rethinking the practice of measuring ISR sufficiency by counting CAPS, he argues.
“We have to get people to stop thinking about input measures—the number of platforms that are flown—and start thinking about output measures, that is, the received output from the entire system,” Deptula says. Ground troops “don’t care how many CAPS are being flown. What they care about is, are they getting increased situational awareness by what’s being flown?”
The Air Force has 53 Reapers and plans to buy 329 in all. There is no official connection between the programs, but Gorgon Stare also could be carried on a future unmanned aircraft known as Magic, an acronym for Medium-Altitude Global ISR and Communications, being designed to fly for five days at 20,000 ft. with a 1,000-lb. payload. Magic is being developed by Aurora Flight Sciences under a $4.7-million contract awarded Sept. 15 by the Air Force Research Laboratory. Aurora will use its Orion Unmanned Aerial System as the airframe for Magic.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)