Yesterday’s eerie crime report about the 18 dead birds arranged in a circle on the north Cooper Street bridge chilled me to the bone. Most people just thought it was weird, but I find it both disconcerting and alarming.

Yet, because of the lack of information, I’m still not entirely sure what to make of the situation. The cause of the birds’ death was unclear to the police, so I don’t want to instantly cry murder if their deaths were not directly intentional. I certainly hope that the person(s) involved didn’t kill the birds — that would be despicable. I considered the alternative causes of the birds’ deaths, but they are not that much more comforting.

It is possible that the birds died of natural causes, but considering the large number of dead birds, just how “natural” are those causes? A friend of mine reminded me of the fact that the gas drilling in the area causes water contamination, as well as air pollution. Would it be that far of a stretch to consider that to be the cause of the birds’ deaths? I think not.

If the birds died from drinking polluted water, or were negatively affected by air pollutants from the drilling, then they were victims of the environmental harms caused by human activity. In this scenario, the person who arranged the birds may have been collecting them over a period of time, which would still be sickening.

Regardless of the cause of their death, the display of the birds’ dead bodies was insensitive to their plight. I am disgusted by the callous usage of their fate for human purposes, whether it was a prank or a ritual.

Speaking as someone who finds hilarity in almost everything, I cannot see the humor if it was intended to be a joke. If it was a ritual, I personally fail to see the ethical value of a belief system that promotes violence in the objectification of animals. I’m not the only one who found the incident disturbing. But society kills multitudes of birds without blinking an eye for fast food fried chicken restaurants.

Whether they were killed by humans or they died from the consequences of human economic activity, this situation with the birds ultimately forces us to contemplate how we are interacting with animals and the environment.

It was all disturbing at the very least, but it raises important questions that should be asked — what are we doing to the world around us? Do we have a positive or negative affect on our surroundings? And are we treating other beings the way we would want to be treated? If this is considered unnecessary killing, we should consider what makes it different from the death of chickens and turkeys — is there a difference?

Ann Mai is an interdisciplinary studies junior.