A bird rescue group says Auckland Council should do more to stop a deadly disease which is killing off ducks in Auckland parks by educating the public on what not to do.
The birds have been struck down by avian botulism, which is produced when natural bacteria heats up in the water.
The disease is made worse by the actions of the public - sharing leftover bread with ducks is causing harm to the animals.
"Please don't feed bread to ducks in water, bread doesn't bring them anything positive anyway," Bird Rescue's Maria Gomez says.
Even if the bread is not eaten right away, it still harbours the disease, meaning ducks that eat it days later can become critically ill or die.
It's not just ducks that're getting sick, with pukeko's, gulls, eels and frogs also being affected.
The bird rescue group thinks the Auckland Council should maintain the parks better by putting up signs not to feed the birds and making sure water doesn't become stagnant.
"We really want the council to maintain this - they used to have boats out. Now there's none of that," Bird Rescue volunteer Virginia Nicols said.
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