According to senior wildlife biologist, Mark Bidwell, avian flu has been on the radar, but coming across two dead whooping cranes in the province was still unfortunate.

“Our hearts were in our throats” says Bidwell. “We were quite concerned. Of course, animals die all the time, they die for a variety of reasons and it’s part of the life cycle.”

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Whooping cranes have been an endangered species for quite some time. In the 1940s, there were only 14 of them.

Their recovery since then is a Canadian conservation success story.

Bidwell says if you find yourself coming any dead or sick bird, make sure to keep your distance and contact the Canadian Wildlife Health Cooperative.

Learn more in the video above.