Drunk Birds Cause Ruckus in Georgia as Weather Gets Warmer

As the weather warms, wildlife officials in Georgia are cautioning locals to watch out for drunk birds smashing through windows and causing a ruckus.

During this time of year, fruit-eating birds like American robins and cedar waxwings may overindulge in food that has begun to rot and ferment, according to the Georgia Department of Natural Resources (DNR).

Drunk Birds in Georgia

Alcohol is a byproduct of fermentation. According to the DNR's Facebook post, eating these fermented fruits and berries can cause birds to lose a lot of coordination and flying ability. They may collide with windows and other objects as a result of this. Sadly, if they consume enough of the fermented fruit, they can also pass away immediately from alcohol poisoning.

According to the DNR, birds that have consumed sacred bamboo or Nandina berries may also be the cause of drunken flying. Oftentimes, lethal doses of cyanide are deposited in the bright red fruit of this exotic invasive plant, which is used in landscaping.

Treating a Drunk Bird

DNR representatives advised Georgians to be vigilant for birds flying while intoxicated and to contact the authorities if they see any sick or injured birds, Southern Living reports.

Birds that are intoxicated have been known to hurt themselves by flying into walls or windows. When a bird is discovered drunk but not hurt or ill, it can be kept safe for a few hours until it becomes sober again by putting it in a cardboard box with air holes.

Keep the box in a secure location away from danger and predators, but try to avoid interfering too much. The bird will be fine once the alcohol has left its system - possibly hungover but prepared to fly, says Empress of Dirt.

Other Drunken Wildlife

A Swedish moose or elk that seemed to be drunk got stuck in a tree in September 2011. An elk was trapped in an apple tree with just one leg remaining on the ground, according to Per Johansson, who saw the intoxicated animal in a Särö backyard next to his house. The moose got stuck in the tree while attempting to get fresh fruit and most likely became inebriated from eating apples that were fermenting on the ground.

According to Johansson, drunken elk are a common sight in Swedish gardens during the autumn, when there are a lot of rotting apples on the ground as well as hanging from branches.

Scientists discovered that the Malaysian pen-tailed treeshrew has the highest alcohol tolerance in the world in their 2008 study, which was published in PNAS. The fermented nectar from the Bertam palm flower buds is consumed by seven different species of animals, such as the slow loris and the treeshrew. The treeshrew sips this beverage all day long, but it never becomes intoxicated.

Marc-André Lachance, a microbiologist from the University of Western Ontario, said that they appear to have evolved some sort of defense mechanism to handle that much alcohol without getting intoxicated. The amount of alcohol that the study refers to is significantly higher than the threshold for consumption in most nations, according to Lachance, a co-author of the study, Smithsonian Magazine reports.