Bird Flu Strikes UK Wildlife

New Scientist ^ | 1-10-2008 | Debora MacKenzie

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Bird flu strikes UK wildlife

17:28 10 January 2008
NewScientist.com news service
Debora MacKenzie

The H5N1 bird flu virus has been confirmed in three dead swans on a nature reserve in Dorset, on the south coast of England.

The outbreak, coming barely two months after H5N1 killed domestic turkeys on a farm 500 kilometres away, raises the possibility that the virus could be lurking in the UK’s wild bird population.

"While this is obviously unwelcome news, we have always said that Britain is at a constant low level of risk of introduction of avian influenza," said acting chief veterinary officer Fred Landeg on announcing the finding on Thursday.

This is the fourth time H5N1 has been found in Britain. The first time was in a dead wild whooper swan in Scotland. It was not clear whether that bird became infected in Britain or migrated in while carrying the virus.

The subsequent two outbreaks were on turkey farms in the county of Suffolk in February and November 2007. Both were located near nature reserves with migrant ducks, which are known to carry H5N1.

Virus indicator The site of the current outbreak, picked up by routine surveillance, is a swannery originally established by 11th century monks, and now a tourist attraction. It hosts hundreds of swans and other aquatic birds, including migrants.

Dead swans have been found across Europe where there have been local outbreaks of H5N1, and are considered a sensitive indicator of the presence of the virus in wild bird populations. The birds found in Dorset were mute swans, which do not generally migrate long distances.

“The outbreak of H5N1 virus…in November was thought to have been spread to turkeys from wild fowl that may have migrated from Europe,” said John McCauley of Britain’s National Institute

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BF Ping.