Sandhill cranes in Indiana are dying from bird flu

In Indiana, a large number of sandhill cranes are dying from bird flu. Sean Leone, a local resident, noticed dead cranes after seeing thousands of them at Fish Lake last month. He started reporting the deaths to the Indiana Department of Natural Resources (DNR) after finding several dead birds. The DNR confirmed that the cranes are being killed by avian influenza. Deaths have been reported in about 30 counties across Indiana. More than 2,700 sandhill cranes are estimated to have died, but officials believe the actual number is higher. This is the first time that bird flu has significantly affected sandhill cranes in the state. Leone described watching the birds succumb to the illness. He saw many of them acting strangely before dying. Concerned about the health of Fish Lake, Leone started collecting the dead birds himself and asked for help from volunteers. Together, they have collected 123 cranes so far. Diane Snyder Cruz, one of the volunteers, joined Leone to prevent the dead birds from impacting the lake's water quality. While some people in the community think there are too many cranes, Cruz and Leone feel sad about the situation. The DNR hopes that the deaths will decline as warmer weather approaches and the virus fades.