It was a 'very bad year' for New Jersey wildlife in 2021. Here's how the public can help

A year when a pandemic continued to harm the public, 2021 also brought about troubling times for animals in New Jersey.

Two significant animal diseases affected the state this year, one killing birds and another deer. 

The bird disease was alarming, particularly because its causes are still unknown. During the summer it killed hundreds if not thousands of birds across New Jersey and other states in the eastern United States. 

The disease primarily affected songbird fledglings and hatchlings. The birds that died from the unidentified affliction exhibited eye swelling and discharge, and also displayed signs of neurological issues.

As a result, scientists asked that people take down their birdfeeders, in order to prevent spreading the disease. But now? It's safe to put them back up, because the disease seems to have gone away, despite its cause never having been identified.

Dr. Nicole Lewis is the wildlife veterinarian for the state's Division of Fish and Wildlife. She worked with her equivalents in other states to research the disease and rule others out in order to figure out what exactly happened.

"We still don't know," Lewis said. "But we are going to continue to try to determine the cause."

During the summer, when the disease was killing birds, Lewis collected dozens of carcasses from around the state from people who had reported seeing a bird exhibiting symptoms.

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While a conclusion was never reached, theories did emerge.

It's possible that the disease was linked to the emergence of the Brood X cicadas over the summer. Lewis said the areas that had the heaviest bird deaths were those with a large cicada presence. According to Lewis, there has been information circulating about a fungus that the cicadas may have had. That theory is furthered by the fact that the disease seems to have gone away with the cicadas. If that is indeed the case, it could be another 17 years before the disease is seen again.

It's also possible the disease was seasonal, and that when next summer rolls around it could return.

"We don't know enough about it at the moment to be able to make those predictions," Lewis said.

Difficult year for animals

The bird disease was not the only animal malady that struck in 2021. In September, the New Jersey Division of Fish and Wildlife confirmed that epizootic hemorrhaging disease, generally referred to as EHD, was killing deer in the state. 

Unlike the mysterious bird disease, EHD is a well-known problem that has affected white-tailed deer in years past. It's caused by midge bites, though those midges are often killed off by a hard frost. Once the midges are gone, so is the disease. But with two animal diseases in one year, Lewis said this year was particularly difficult.

"This was a very bad year," she said.

One concern, according to Lewis, is that climate change could potentially worsen animal outbreaks. It was a very wet 2021 in New Jersey, with summer bringing multiple big storms, which are linked to climate change.

Vector-borne diseases like EHD and the West Nile virus, which comes from mosquitoes, are often worse in years with a lot of rain.

"In those really wet years, you're going to see these numbers go up," Lewis said.

For someone in Lewis' position, which is to help identify and combat animal sicknesses, it can be hard to predict the bad years. For something like EHD, about which there is decades' worth of research, an outbreak can usually be expected about every three years, she said. But with the birds, it would have been almost impossible to predict.

Having to react essentially on the fly to the unknown disease, researchers will now at least have experience dealing with it if it pops up again.

"We've all seen it, the wildlife rehabilitation people have seen it, so they know what to watch out for," Lewis said. "We would definitely be able to recognize it a bit sooner."

The public wants to help

When animals are found sick or injured, there are lots of people whose inclination is to try to help. Lewis saw this firsthand. After news coverage of the bird disease revealed that fledglings were dying en masse, Lewis said she would receive hundreds of emails per day from random people who had found sick or dead birds. Lewis tried to respond to as many as possible, but it naturally became difficult.

Eventually an online report form was set up so people could report what they found, making it easier for Lewis to judge what was worthy of collecting.

"We got the report forms, and that made it quite a bit easier for me to continue," Lewis said.

But the help is certainly appreciated. The Division of Fish and Wildlife uses public interest when diseases crop up among animals. The department will post on its webpage and social media channels if something like EHD or the bird disease appears.

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Lewis said that if you find a sick or injured animal, don't try to treat it yourself — that would be illegal.  Contact a permitted wildlife rehabilitator nearby.

"When people call me, it's because they care," Dolores Garbowski said. 

Garbowski is one of those rehabilitators, and she runs the nonprofit Wildlife Freedom Inc. in Wanaque. Garbowski specializes in mammals and has rehabilitated countless deer, raccoons and other animals over the years. 

Most of the deer Garbowski rehabilitates are injured or orphaned fawns. But in the last year alone, Garbowski said, she rehabilitated about 500 raccoons, and she works with foxes and coyotes, too. 

During the summer months, she is hardly able to leave her property because of the number of animals she and her volunteers help return to the wild. But when she gets calls — and she gets a lot — she gives instructions to those concerned on how to help and will work to arrange pickups with animal control agencies and wildlife hospitals.

"I do find more people than not are kind," Garbowski said. "They want to help."

When it comes to helping wildlife, Lewis is not surprised people seem so willing to pitch in, especially in a tough year for animals.

"They're worth caring for," Lewis said. "They're worth doing what you can."

Liam Quinn is a breaking news reporter for NorthJersey.com. To get breaking news directly to your inbox, sign up for our newsletter.

Email: quinnl@northjersey.com

Twitter: @Liam_D_Quinn