Mass electrocution kills 140 flamingos in India
File photo of a flock of Greater Flamingoes in India. Nearly 140 greater flamingos were killed in a wildlife sanctuary in western India when they were startled and flew into a string of high tension power lines, a forest official said Friday.
Nearly 140 greater flamingos were killed in a wildlife sanctuary in western India when they were startled and flew into a string of high tension power lines, a forest official said Friday.
Tens of thousands of flamingos turn the flat, warm marshes of the Khadir region of Gujarat state into a sea of pink every year when they fly in from Siberia to breed.
This year, their numbers were unusually high, with around 500,000 birds making the migratory flight from Siberia, district chief conservator of forests D.K. Sharma told AFP.
Sharma said the mass electrocution took place some 12 days ago, when a large flock of flamingos was startled at night by the noise of a vehicle.
"The entire flock took off. Many of them flew straight into the electric wires and 139 were killed instantly," he said.
S.K. Nanda, a senior official in the Gujarat Forests and Environment Department, said a feasibility study had been ordered into the possibility of insulating the cables or having them moved underground.
(c) 2011 AFP
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Dec 02, 2011
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Dec 02, 2011
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Dec 02, 2011
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I smell bullshit, the land was probably owned by the power company, who in turn had it declared a nature sanctuary for tax write offs and subsidies/donations. Nothing new.
Dec 02, 2011
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Dec 02, 2011
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Ummm...have you been to the forest or national parks in the east US?
It's pretty standard to string the higher power lines through a nature preserve - It reduces the potential for human interaction that could potentially damage the lines or hurt the person. Also, if all the roads go around the park, you can save substantial infrastructure costs by running it through the sanctuary.
Power companies often do turn it into a santuary or nature preserve - it's a win-win. Nature gets protected by the power company, who want to keep it that way for various business and maintenance reasons, and you get cheaper power.
The one thing I don't smell here is bullshit.
Also, tonight is flamingo drumstick night at the plant.
Dec 02, 2011
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http://s0.geograp...810c.jpg
Dec 02, 2011
Rank: 5 / 5 (1)
Yes, I've lived near a few myself. I love the defoliants they use. j/k
Dec 03, 2011
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