Alcohol poisoning, not avian flu, killed Romanian birds

BBC ^ | January 12, 2011 | Unknown

[decimon]

Birds that were thought to have died from avian flu in Romania instead apparently drank themselves to death.

Residents of Constanta in eastern Romania found dozens of dead starlings on the outskirts of the city on Saturday.

They alerted authorities, fearing the birds had died from avian flu.

But local veterinary officials decided the starlings had died after eating grape 'marc' - the leftovers from the wine-making process.

[decimon]

Nobody knows, how fly I am.

[dfwgator]

Don’t Drink and Fly.

[ArrogantBustard]

I have heard (from actual Indians) that sometimes wild elephants in India will get drunk from eating fermented fruit and then go on rampages.

[ThePatriotsFlag]

Makes sense, ‘splains it for Arkansas ... the birds found the stills.

[Uncle Miltie]

[Erik Latranyi]

I have heard (from actual American Indians) that sometimes natives on reservations will get drunk from all sorts of things and then go on rampages.

[JoeProBono]

Ya gotta eat when you booze

[Beowulf9]

Lol! New Jersey birdies are smarter than Romanian birdies.

[null and void]

Is that Cheney in the background?

[Sacajaweau]

Sure explains the birds in Italy with the purple on the tip of their beaks...

[Sacajaweau]

More likely the natives are drunk and the elephants are seen in double...Looks like a rampage..

[ArrogantBustard]

I have seen the "meth and vodka" rampages with my own two eyes.

I think I'd rather deal with a herd of drunken elephants.

[Sacajaweau]

Where the hell did I get elephants from?? I think I’m drunk..

[Sacajaweau]

Whew...No 3 explains it

[decimon]

I have heard (from actual Indians) that sometimes wild elephants in India will get drunk from eating fermented fruit and then go on rampages.

I've read before of birds getting shlonged on fermented berries.

[Bernard Marx]

I’m an actual American and I used to laugh hysterically when birds ate too many fermented pyracantha berries from bushes in my yard. Their drunken flying was about as funny as anything I’ve ever seen. That kind of avian “boozing” is very common.

[decimon]

Whew...No 3 explains it

No, you're drunk. ;-)

[woodbutcher1963]

I have seen this in NH when grouse(partridge) eat grapes/bearies which then ferment in their systems. We had one fly through a plate glass window in our old office once. It scared the heck out of us. Sounded like a shotgun going off.

[ArrogantBustard]

Some of my fellow Avian-Americans do seem to have trouble holding their fermented rotten berry mush ...

[The Comedian]

I've always had an apprecitation(hic!), apprehension (hic!), aperitif for our fine feathered (hic!) friends...

Frowning takes 68 muscles.
Smiling takes 6.
Pulling this trigger takes 2.
I'm lazy.