Mysterious disease on peacock-killing spree in Sindh

A mysterious disease has killed more than 40 peacocks over the course of three days in the Thar desert, Geo News reported on Saturday. The channel said that the mysterious disease in the peacocks was discovered when 15 birds were killed in a village near Islamkot. Locals said that after being infected by the disease, the eyes of the peacocks had popped out because of swelling and they died within 24 hours. The disease has now spread to several villages. The samples of the disease-inflicted peacocks have been sent to Karachi. The channel said that about eight to 10 peacocks a day are reportedly dying in areas of Kehri and Islamkot union councils in Tharparkar district. Bharumal Amrani who works for preservation and protection of wildlife in Thar said the number of blue peacocks found only in India and Thar was dropping each day due to change in rainfall pattern, increase in human population and their anti-environment activities, illegal sale of eggs, smuggling and the practice of keeping birds as pets in bungalows and guesthouses in unfavorable conditions. He said the birds had fallen victim to the mysterious disease that attacked their throat in initial stages. The throat develops a small lump which grows bigger by the day until it bursts and a worm wriggles out of it. The bird first goes blind and then dies suddenly, he said. He said no survey of birds, especially of peacocks, had ever been carried out in Thar to count its population. In the past, the birds’ number had fallen considerably in the wake of long spell of droughts and installation of electric poles, he said. As the bird landed on electrical wires its heavy weight caused the wires to swerve downwards and contract other wires, causing electrocution and death of birds, he said. According to villagers, no Wildlife official had visited the area where peacocks are dying in such large number of the unidentified disease. According to former nazim of Kehri union council Dost Ali Wasepoto, scores of peacocks have died in Kehri, Paluro, Mohario and other villages.