RADFORD, Va. – Radford University students were shocked Thursday afternoon to see a slew of dead birds on the ground.
At least 55 American Robins were found dead or on the verge of taking their last breath on the college campus.
Southwest Virginia Wildlife Center was able to save two birds that are recovering well.
At this time, the Virginia Department of Wildlife Resources is investigating the cause of death by testing five birds.
Sabrina Garvin, the executive director of Southwest Virginia Wildlife Center, said they have many speculations, but one idea is that the birds died from trauma.
“It could be they ingested some type of fermented berry or a toxin and then possibly that made them drunk,” Garvin said. “They fell to the ground. And the fall to the ground caused the injury or the death.”
The surviving birds will remain with the wildlife center until test results return.