Bird Flu Strain Could be Hard to Spot
seattlepi.com
20 April 2006
Lauran Neegarrd
AP Medical Writer
WASHINGTON -- Ducks have a flu season just like people do - and they're more likely to be sick in the fall than in the spring.
So authorities must keep their guard up even if the government's mass testing of migrating birds, beginning now in Alaska, doesn't spot the worrisome H5N1 bird-flu strain right away.
That's a key warning from a new review, being published Friday, of what scientists know - and don't know - about how waterfowl constantly incubate influenza, and how much of a role wild birds play as this deadly new flu strain hopscotches around the globe.
And it's one that federal wildlife officials are taking into account as they determine how many birds to test now, as ducks and other migratory species start flying into Alaska's breeding grounds from Asia, and how many to test later in the year.
"If results in the spring are entirely negative, we still have that opportunity in the late summer and the fall when many species of birds come into closer contact with one another ... all using the same wetlands at the same time rather than using more discreet breeding areas," said Grace McLaughlin, who is helping to lead that testing at the U.S. Geological Survey's National Wildlife Health Center in Madison, Wis.
Sick Deer are Cause for Concern, Not Panic
The Free Lance - Star
20 April 2006
Ken Perrotte
AMYSTERIOUS AILMENT has been afflicting deer in Loudoun and Fauquier counties and state wildlife officials are grappling for answers.
Most of the deer brought to Dr. Jonathan Sleeman for necropsy were killed because they exhibited signs of severe illness, including diarrhea and emaciation. With concerns running high over preventing Chronic Wasting Disease from entering Virginia, the sick deer rapidly became a priority, according to Jerry Sims, regional biologist for the DGIF.
Chronic Wasting Disease has not been detected in any of the deer tested, according to Sleeman, a wildlife veterinarian for the Department of Game and Inland Fisheries.
The problem was first discovered a couple of months ago and both fawns and adult deer have exhibited sickness, with nearly 10 examined in detail post-mortem.
"At one point, there was a thought that this may be related to an element deficiency, such as selenium, but that isn't bearing out," Sims said.
Added Sleeman: "I am seeing emaciation with chronic enteritis [inflammation of the gut]. Some cases also have pneumonia. We have not determined the exact cause, but I am suspicious that it is caused by an infectious agent such as a parasite or bacteria.
"However, we have established that these deer appear to be on marginal nutrition, and high deer densities may be a factor," he said, also explaining that people feeding deer may also be contributing to this problem by concentrating deer in the same area.
Protection of Wetlands Way to Curb Bird Flu
Kenya Times Newspaper
21 April 2006
Mbae Lawrence
THE loss of wetlands around the world is forcing wild birds that may have avian influenza onto alternative sites like farm ponds and paddy fields, where they come into contact with chickens, ducks, and geese, a new report commissioned by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) has revealed.
According to the report by Dr. David Rapport of Canada, the restoration of the tens of thousands of lost and degraded wetlands could help reduce the threat of an avian flu pandemic by providing wild birds with their preferred habitat.
The report’s preliminary findings were announced at a scientific seminar on avian influenza taking place at UNEP headquarters in Nairobi.
"Wetland depletion has direct implications for migrating wild birds," Dr. Rapport says.
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