Local birders who participated in the recent 2005 Anchorage Christmas Bird Count noted a sharp increase in European starlings (Sturnus vulgaris), a sometimes aggressive species that's relatively new to Alaska.

The threat to many species of wild birds and backyard poultry flocks is the same or greater than it was last year, said Dr. Bob Gerlach.

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Dead birds suspected to have died from Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza have been found on Kigigak Island and Tutakoke River in Alaska, with other bird species displaying unusual behaviors.