PETERSBURG-AK US and Canadian scientists are trying to pinpoint the source of lead that’s caused a mysterious die-off of trumpeter swans from Alaska. Researchers say the swans have been ingesting old lead shot when they migrate south for the winter. Signifcant numbers of the birds have been found dead on both sides of the border in southern British Columbia and northern Washington state. Lead shot is no longer allowed in waterfowl hunting, but researchers say a lot remains in the environment from before the ban. The Petersburg Humane Association is sponsoring a talk on the issue tonight. The presenter is Doctor Victoria Bowes, a diagnostic avian pathologist with the Ministry of Agriculture in Abbotsford, British Columbia. Matt Lichtenstein spoke with Bowes about the swan mortality study
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