High as kites, drunk birds crash, die. Japan Times (November 4th, 2012)
Pre Questions
- A lot of dead birds were found on the ground. What do you think happened?
- Why do you think the birds fell out of the sky?
The Original Article
A spate of young blackbird deaths at a school in England was likely caused by the birds getting drunk on fermented berries, crashing midair and falling from the sky; veterinarians said Saturday.
Police and animal experts were called in after more than a dozen birds were found dead at an elementary school la Cumbria last August, many of them sporting serious injuries. One of the juvenile blackbirds was found alive but appeared drunk, pressing its wings into the ground to steady itself and trying to stay upright by leaning against the walls of the enclosure it was taken to.
Foul play was initially suspected, but postmortem examinations ruled out a murder spree or diseases like bird flu. Instead, the examiners found berries in the birds’ stomachs that had a smell of fermentation, said a report in the BMJ Group journal Veterinary Record. Further toxicological testing found high levels of pure alcohol or ethanol in the liver of one of the birds.
The lone survivor made a full recovery and was released back , into the wild after sleeping off its hangover.
A spate of young blackbird deaths at a school in England was likely caused by the birds getting drunk on fermented berries, crashing midair and falling from the sky; veterinarians said Saturday.
Police and animal experts were called in after more than a dozen birds were found dead at an elementary school la Cumbria last August, many of them sporting serious injuries. One of the juvenile blackbirds was found alive but appeared drunk, pressing its wings into the ground to steady itself and trying to stay upright by leaning against the walls of the enclosure it was taken to.
Foul play was initially suspected, but postmortem examinations ruled out a murder spree or diseases like bird flu. Instead, the examiners found berries in the birds’ stomachs that had a smell of fermentation, said a report in the BMJ Group journal Veterinary Record. Further toxicological testing found high levels of pure alcohol or ethanol in the liver of one of the birds.
The lone survivor made a full recovery and was released back , into the wild after sleeping off its hangover.
Easy Version
Some young blackbirds were found dead at a school in England. They probably got drunk on fermented berries and fell from the sky. One of the blackbirds was found alive. It seemed drunk. It was pressing its wings into the ground and leaning against a wall so that it didn't fall over. Disease and murder weren't the cause of the deaths. Fermented berries were found in the birds’ stomachs. Tests showed high levels of alcohol in one of the bird’s liver.
The sole surviving bird slept off its hangover and then was released (back into the wild).
Some young blackbirds were found dead at a school in England. They probably got drunk on fermented berries and fell from the sky. One of the blackbirds was found alive. It seemed drunk. It was pressing its wings into the ground and leaning against a wall so that it didn't fall over. Disease and murder weren't the cause of the deaths. Fermented berries were found in the birds’ stomachs. Tests showed high levels of alcohol in one of the bird’s liver.
The sole surviving bird slept off its hangover and then was released (back into the wild).
Conversation Starter Questions
- What other things fall out of the sky?
- Did you hear about fish falling out of the sky in Japan? How is this possible?
- If you found a lot of dead or injured animals, what would you do?
- What fermented things do we eat?
- Can you stand without support when very drunk?
- How do you deal with a hangover?
- Could this be a good excuse, if you get pulled over for drunk driving (DUI )
Practice making sentences using - against
- lean against
- be against
- prepare against
- go against
- play against
- vote against
- fight against
- advise against
- insured against
- precautions against (a fire)
- against the law
Further Practice
- one of ...
- probably
- it seemed ....
- ... so that ...
