Black-capped chickadee with deformed beak

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phoeni...@gmail.com

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Feb 23, 2019, 9:51:53 PM2/23/19
to Colorado Birds

I found this chickadee with deformed beak in my yard yesterday.  There may be even one more chickadee like this hanging out in my yard because I got a brief look at one today with just extra long beak and not twisted.


DSCN4127.JPG

According to some research, such birds carries a new form of virus but scientists haven't established the causal relationship between the virus and the deformed beak yet  (https://news.nationalgeographic.com/2016/08/twisted-beaks/). Time to sterilize the feeders again *sigh*


Karl Stecher Jr.

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Feb 23, 2019, 11:30:30 PM2/23/19
to Colorado Birds, phoeni...@gmail.com
Where do you live, please?  City, county?   Thanks.
 
Karl Stecher
Aurora/Arapahoe
 
 
 

From: phoeni...@gmail.com
Sent: Saturday, February 23, 2019 7:52 PM
To: "Colorado Birds" <cob...@googlegroups.com>
Subject: [cobirds] Black-capped chickadee with deformed beak
 

I found this chickadee with deformed beak in my yard yesterday.  There may be even one more chickadee like this hanging out in my yard because I got a brief look at one today with just extra long beak and not twisted.

 

DSCN4127.JPG

According to some research, such birds carries a new form of virus but scientists haven't established the causal relationship between the virus and the deformed beak yet  (https://news.nationalgeographic.com/2016/08/twisted-beaks/). Time to sterilize the feeders again *sigh*

 

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phoeni...@gmail.com

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Feb 24, 2019, 10:01:11 AM2/24/19
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If anyone who has seen any birds with deformed beaks, please report the observation here: https://alaska.usgs.gov/science/biology/landbirds/beak_deformity/observerreport.php

Scott

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Feb 24, 2019, 10:41:17 AM2/24/19
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A few years ago, I caught a mountain Chickadee as part of a banding operation with a similar bill configuration. upon close er examination, it have a jaw injury that made his lower mandible off line with his upper. I took a finger nail clippers and reformed it's bill. Its a common practice with falconers.

Scott Rashid
Estes Park
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phoeni...@gmail.com

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Feb 24, 2019, 9:38:55 PM2/24/19
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I live in Broomfield.

Phoenix
Broomfield

Karl Stecher Jr.

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Feb 25, 2019, 3:28:51 AM2/25/19
to Colorado Birds, phoeni...@gmail.com
thanks
 
 
 

From: phoeni...@gmail.com
Sent: Sunday, February 24, 2019 10:49 PM
To: "Colorado Birds" <cob...@googlegroups.com>
Subject: *** SPAM 10: Re: [cobirds] Black-capped chickadee with deformed beak

phoeni...@gmail.com

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Apr 10, 2019, 2:51:00 PM4/10/19
to Colorado Birds
To follow up on this topic, after cleaning and taking down the feeders for 2 weeks, this chickadee hasn't returned.  

Because I was curious about the reported rate of birds with deformed beaks in Colorado, so I asked the Alaska Science Center which has been collecting reports on birds with deformed beaks about it.  I finally heard back from them today. Here's the reply from the biologist Lisa Pajot:

"As far as I can tell, your report is the first for a deformed black-capped chickadee. We have had several reports of deformed mountain chickadees and we have had around 50 reports of various species of deformed birds from Colorado over the years."

I hope that the chickadee that I had seen really just had an injury instead of the virus spreading to Colorado.


Phoenix Kwan
Broomfield, CO
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