Thousands of birds have fallen out of the sky in Esperance, Australia over the past three weeks. No cause has yet been found for the mysterious bird kill. Yesterday, a similar event occurred yesterday in Austin, Texas, where some sixty birds were had died. Initial thoughts were that they had been poisoned, but no dangerous contaminants were found on the fowl. They have been sent to laboratories for further testing. An unexplained gas smell was also reported in New York, which caused several people to be hospitalised from nausea and upset stomachs.

Quote: "District nature conservation coordinator Mike Fitzgerald said: "It's very substantial. We estimate several thousand birds are dead, although we don't have a clear number because of the large areas of bushland." Birds Australia, the nation's main bird conservation group, said it had not heard of a similar occurrence. "Not on that scale, and all at the same time, and also the fact that it's several different species," chief executive Graeme Hamilton said. "You'd have to call that a most unusual event and one that we'd all have to be concerned about."

Whatever the cause of this is, I am sure there is an explanation for it. The Bible of course does mention a massive bird kill in the book of Numbers. After God delivered the children of Israel from Egypt, and they refused to enter the promised land, God turned them back and they journeyed the wilderness for forty years. But God was still gracious, and provided them with manna to eat. The children of Israel murmured against Moses after they became sick of the manna God was providing for them. God gave them their desires and sent thousands of quails into the camp. But while they were eating the birds, God judged them for their wickedness and thousands of people died. While we don't eat quails in the West, perhaps we would do well to remember the sin of the Israelites, and turn to God for salvation while we still have the opportunity.

Numbers 11:32-34
And the people stood up all that day, and all [that] night, and all the next day, and they gathered the quails: he that gathered least gathered ten homers: and they spread [them] all abroad for themselves round about the camp. And while the flesh [was] yet between their teeth, ere it was chewed, the wrath of the LORD was kindled against the people, and the LORD smote the people with a very great plague. And he called the name of that place Kibrothhattaavah: because there they buried the people that lusted.

Source WorldNetDaily, CantonRep, Time