The bodies of the pelicans have been autopsied and the results are expected very soon.
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ALAN D. WILSON
Several hundred pelican bodies have been found in the Djoudj National Bird Park (PNOD) in Senegal.
"This January 23, following a patrol, it was noted a high mortality: 750 pelicans (740 young and ten adults)", said in a statement the Ministry of the Environment.
The Senegalese authorities announced on Wednesday the "suspension" of public access.
To determine the cause of death of the animals, the ministry ordered "to carry out the autopsy on the spot and to take samples" which were "sent" for analysis in a national laboratory, according to the statement.
The results will be available in four days according to the National Director of National Parks, Bocar Thiam.
Avian flu trail ruled out
The authorities have already ruled out the hypothesis of avian flu, of which an outbreak which recently appeared on a poultry farm in the west of the country was officially circumscribed, as the cause of this unusual mortality of the pelicans of Djoudj.
“Avian flu only affects seed-eating birds.
But pelicans are piscivores.
We cannot say that it is about this disease ”, declared Bocar Thiam.
Created in 1971, with an area of 16,000 hectares, the Djoudj National Bird Park (PNOD) has been classified since 1981 as a World Heritage Site by Unesco.
Located in the north of the country, the park is made up of a succession of wetlands, savannah and numerous canals, lakes, ponds and swamps.
There are nearly 400 species of birds there, or more than three million individuals.
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