Dozens of birds turned up dead or dying on a Virginia bridge Saturday morning, and state wildlife officials are trying to figure out why.

The Virginia Department of Wildlife Resources launched an investigation after residents discovered the grim scene on the Hoskins Creek bridge along Route 17 in Tappahannock, WTVR CBS 6 reported. A conservation police officer collected samples from the site for analysis.

Wayne Veney Jr. rushed to the bridge after his girlfriend spotted the birds while driving through town. He captured the disturbing sight on video.

“Man, it is dead birds everywhere out here,” Veney said in a Facebook post around 8:50 a.m. “These jokers is bleeding from the mouth.” (RELATED: Human Infected With New Strain Of Bird Flu Previously Only Seen In Animals)

“I could not believe it and had to go see for myself,” he added. “I was in disbelief … It saddened me to see so many birds hanging on to dear life as others were already dead.”

Officials temporarily closed the bridge to clean up the carcasses. Tappahannock Police urged residents to avoid contact with any dead birds and report sightings to state wildlife authorities.

The cause remains unknown pending analysis from wildlife biologists expected Monday.

Virginia has dealt with similar incidents in recent months. In October, dead black vultures appeared at Roslyn Landing Park in Colonial Heights and later tested positive for H5N1, the highly pathogenic avian influenza virus.

State officials warned residents against handling sick or dead wild birds and asked anyone who finds five or more dead vultures, waterfowl or shorebirds in the same area to contact the Virginia Wildlife Conflict Helpline.

Tappahannock sits about 45 miles from Richmond.