Most people go for years without seeing a sick bird.
House Finch Disease House Finch Disease was first noticed in 1994 by a handful of FeederWatchers in the Washington D. C. area. You might observe an infected bird sitting quietly in your yard, clumsily scratching an eye against its foot or a tree. While some infected birds recover, many die from starvation, exposure, or predation. Conjunctivitis can have many causes, but the type most often seen in House Finches is caused by the bacterium Mycoplasma gallisepticum . This bacterium has long been known as a pathogen of domestic turkeys and chickens, but has been observed in House Finches only since 1994.