The deaths of hundreds of wild birds along Mexico’s Pacific coast were likely caused by the El Niño climate phenomenon, local authorities said on Thursday, as the country and its surrounding oceans face an intense heat wave.

Some 300 wild birds of various species were found dead over the weekend along the coasts of Mexico’s western states of Chiapas, Oaxaca, Guerrero, Michoacan, Jalisco, Sonora and Baja California Sur.

Authorities had initially suspected bird flu, but a joint effort from the country’s agriculture and environment ministries concluded the most likely reason was warmer oceans resulting from El Niño.

Crosspost from: https://beehaw.org/post/596626

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