Drum Fish are 'bottom feeders.' They are very large fish. Therefore, when they feed they eat substantial amounts of food. It could be a 'quantity' issue that was some kind of 'toxic' release which could be algae as well. The Arkansas Fish and Game along with US Fish and Wildlife should be able to figure this one out. If it is a 'physical' cause that damaged the internal organs of the animals then it is 'location' that is the key.There is a lot of reason to believe these incidents are related. It doesn't really make sense it is weather related, because the fish started showing up an entire week before the incident with the Red Winged Blackbirds.
...Red-winged Blackbirds (click here) roost in flocks in all months of the year. In summer small numbers roost in the wetlands where the birds breed. Winter flocks can be congregations of several million birds, including other blackbird species and starlings. Each morning the roosts spread out, traveling as far as 50 miles to feed, then re-forming at night....
...The oldest recorded Red-winged Blackbird was 15 years 9 months old.
Red Wing Blackbirds are found throughout North America, this is not a unique species in Arkansas.
With the 'flight range' the Red Wing has it is very easy to put them at the place where the fish were killed. The two considerations are 'birds fly' and 'fish float and swim.' These are not stationary objects. They are living animals with habitat in common.
Drum fish are known to have longevity up to sixty years unless they are caught on a hook. So, for this many Drum Fish to turn up dead something had to cause it. These fish and birds are very hearty species. They don't die easily.
If there is no CHEMICAL ASSAY or VIRAL or BACTERIAL ASSAY that shows anything then the next conclusion is 'concussion' and one has to wonder what exploded in the water with a concussion wave to injure the birds.
Internal bleeding is also caused by warfarin as well. So, I doubt the investigation is over yet. There are issues of city water dumping in that what is called 'clean water' is known to have 'medical waste' dumped from toilets.
The concussion wave?
Couple of things.
People on 'Winter Break' were actually playing with a significant amount of explosives and carried it out in the water where the sound would be muffled.
OR
There was a methane bed that broke lose and exploded.
Either way the birds could have sustained 'less damage' because they were 'in the air' and the air absorbed some of the concussive force so they didn't die instantly, but, were attempting to heal in a common 'familiar' area and finally succumbed to their internal injuries. It makes sense to me the birds, being sturdy species, would not necessarily die immediately whereas the fish would be more impacted by an explosion in the water that would transmit the energy wave right at them with 'amplified' force due to the water density as opposed to air density.
Whatever the reason, the Arkansas River is involved and needs to be assessed for contaminants, including changes in 'free gases' dissolved in the water. I believe a water analysis is in order regardless of the findings of the wildlife experts.
The specimens needs to come from the locations involved and up and down stream while taking into considering where the water that may have caused this might be in the 'water flow' pattern at the time the specimens are drawn. USGS could possibly comment on 'gas beds' in the region that might be disturbed for one reason or another.
I would be looking for any 'mining' or 'underground' explosion in the area as well to rule out where the 'energy wave' came from including 'terra firma displacement (earthquake, manmade or otherwise.)
