Kentucky Saw Two Massive Blackbird Invasions 38 Years Apart

What are the odds that two highly unusual but highly similar events would happen nearly 40 years apart in two different Kentucky cities? There's a genius out there who could come up with it, but for now, let's take a look back.

The Hopkinsville Blackbird Invasion

In the fall of 1974, residents of Hopkinsville, Kentucky, looked up into the sky only to see it darkened by a bizarrely massive number of blackbirds. Alfred Hitchcock's immortal The Birds, 11 years after its release, must have crossed their minds.

The concerns were myriad, but health hazards from the droppings, among other things, had to have been at the top of the list. Tens of millions of blackbirds descended upon Christian County that day, certainly enough to get federal authorities involved; these enormous flocks were in Fort Campbell airspace. When the Army concocted a plan to use a specific type of detergent that would wash the natural oil from the bird's feathers--the oil is what keeps them warm--the Council on Environmental Quality, the Society for Animal Rights, and Citizens for Animals stepped in with their own unique brands of roadblocks.

Ultimately, the birds left when the weather got warmer, but that wasn't until the next spring. That's an awfully long time to deal with millions of blackbirds.

The LaGrange Blackbird Invasion

How weird it must have been, then, to have practically the same thing happen 38 years later. In January of 2012, folks in Oldham County surely must have recalled the Hopkinsville incident when multitudes of blackbirds made life miserable and a little frightening for LaGrange, Kentucky. It caught CNN's attention.

Two huge blackbird invasions nearly 40 years apart? Sure, it's bizarre, but Kentucky has had its fair share of annoying blackbird issues, including my hometown of Owensboro nine years ago.

It would be nice to get a heads-up for blackbird invasions, but I'm not sure how that would happen. I want enough time to find an umbrella.