Dead sparrows mystery

Police in Changping district are investigating the death of hundreds of sparrows in the Ming Tombs Reservoir area, the Beijing Times reported.

Local residents said the area has been used in recent years for mercy release, a practice in which wild animals are purchased from markets and released back into nature by people wishing to gain religious merit.

According to Tang Guoliang, from the World Society for the Protection of Animals, "Many animals die because they can't adapt to the new environment."

Ten mercy release boxes were found in the woods nearby, but the number of dead sparrows cannot be accounted for by the practice.