Electrocuted, flaming bird carcasses are falling off of power lines and causing wildfires across the U.S.
This surprisingly common phenomenon has been responsible for at least three Colorado wildfires so far this summer.
These events are not isolated.
© Dave Lundy via Flickr
A 2022studyfound that electrocuted birds caused 44 wildfires in the contiguous United States between 2014 and 2018.
That study was led by Taylor Barnes, a biologist who now works for electric utility company EDM International.
In the paper, Barnes wrote that avian-caused ignitions happen when a bird sits on an overhead power line.
Sometimes they burst into flames, Barnes told9News, an NBC affiliate in Colorado.
Sometimes they just fall dead.
Not every bird that is electrocuted will fall to the ground and start a fire.
Odds are, youve seen birds perched on electrical wires countless times without witnessing spontaneous sparrow combustion.
Barnes said birds just going for a sit pose no threat.
The Denver Postreportedthat more than 1,100 acres were burned in the blaze.
Sometimes what can happen is insects can get inside that cap, he told 9News.
No people were injured or killed in the incidents.
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