Random Strange Cases of Mysterious Mass Animal Deaths (27 items)

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  (#11) Kazakhstan Antelope Deaths

  Update, January 2018: In January 2018, researchers discovered that excessive heat was likely the cause of the bacterial infection that led to blood poisoning and internal bleeding. Scientists found that mass die offs historically occur in conjunction with warm and usually wet weather. However, the reason climate changes make saiga antelope more susceptible to illness and infection remains a mystery.

  In late May and early June 2015, over 60,000 endangered saigas, a rare species of antelope, died in the Kazakhstan steppe. While animal die-offs are common on the steppe, the scope of this one, combined with the endangered status of the saiga, sent researchers into overdrive. The cause hasn't been determined, though the culprit was likely a combination of bacteria and environmental factors.

  By November, 2015, the total estimated deaths was set at at least 211,000 – 88% of the antelopes in the Betpak-dala desert of Kazakhstan, and about 70% of the total population. The ultimate cause has still not been definitively determined.
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  (#10) 2015 Patagonia Whale Beaching

  In December 2015, nearly 340 sei whales were found to have beached on the southern coast of Chile in a stranding that experts said was one of the largest they'd ever seen. The exact cause of the mass death was unknown, but the whales most likely died at sea and washed up, where aerial photography spotted their corpses.

  While about three dozen whales were found in April, but the Chilean government opted not to investigate - leaving scientists to gather their own funds to further explore the remote beach.
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  (#23) 2005 Turkish Sheep Jump

  A herd of 1,500 sheep in rural Turkey suddenly decided to commit mass suicide, jumping off a nearby cliff for absolutely no reason. The first 400 died, but the rest survived - owing to the fact that they fell onto the bodies of their comrades. The reason for the jumping was never determined.
  
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  (#17) Chile Prawn Deaths

  In March 2013, residents of a sleepy beach community in Chile were shocked to see a thick carpet of dead prawns. Local fisherman immediately pinned the blame on two new coal fired power plants heating up the water, but the power utility denied they had anything to do with the mystery. It remains unsolved.
  
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  (#8) 2016 Penguin Disaster

  In early 2016, tens of thousands of Adélie penguins were cut off from their food supply by a stranded iceberg, leading to mass deaths. The iceberg, formally called B09B, has altered the colony's environment in Commonwealth Bay, Antarctica - a colony that once contained over 100,000 birds.

  Now, numbers have dropped to a mere tenth of that once strong group, as the grounded iceberg fills the bay with ice, preventing access to the penguins' main food supply.
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  (#9) 2016 Indian Whale Stranding

  In early 2016, dozens of pilot whales suddenly stranded themselves on a beach in southern India. While at least 45 died, many others were able to be guided back to the Indian Ocean. They were rescued by both local authorities and concerned fishermen, who went so far as to physically drag the whales off the beach and back into the water.

  The cause of the stranding is unknown at this time.
  

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