Ornithology and HPAI

[sara.smiles]

In terms of Avian Flu...can we discuss what "birds" are affected/infected/carriers of these virii? Which phylogenic groups (orders/families) are involved? Obviously Anseriformes (waterfowl) and Galliformes ("chicken-like birds") What about Gaviiformes (loons)? Are all families/genus/species within the Order involved?

What is it (biologically) that makes these groups of birds suceptible to these virii?

Will HPAI move into songbirds? Raptors? Crows? Owls?

Simply put...what KINDS of birds can become infected and act as a distribution vector for HPAI?

We learned fairly quickly that, for example, West Nile Virus was in most wild birds, but we used bluejays, crows and raptors as our indicator species. As this virus moves into the US, what indicator wild bird species do we expect to be affected?

As a health officer, when a citizen calls to tell me there is a dead house wren in the front yard...how can I (can I?) allay their fear that this is bird flu dropping out of the skies??

[AlaskaDenise]

Re: Ornithology and HPAI

HPAI has been found in sparrows in Hong Kong, crows in many places, raptors in Europe, Eagles in Indonesia, etc. Here we are being told to report ANY dead bird.

The shorter list may be those that are NOT killed by H5N1...if any. As the various mutations travel and mix, I would expect an ever increasing mortality rate....unless someone has information to the contrary.

.

[Mellie]

Re: Ornithology and HPAI

I was mucking around on the DoI site...
Sect Norton expects birds infected with H5N1 to be in Alaska in April.

This Strategic Plan targets bird species in North America that have the highest risk of being exposed to or infected with the highly pathogenic H5N1 avian influenza subtype because of their migratory movement patterns. Currently, these include birds that migrate directly between Asia and North America, birds that may be in contact with species from areas in Asia with reported outbreaks, or birds that are known to be reservoirs of AI. However, should highly pathogenic H5N1 avian influenza virus be detected in domestic birds in the U.S., sampling of wild birds within the affected flyway may become a high priority as well.

In general, bird flyways represent migration corridors within continental landmasses.

Images of flyways here:
http://www.fao.org/ag/againfo/subjec...rationmap.html

American flyways starting halfway down...
http://www.flutrackers.com/forum/showthread.php?t=86

Also North American Flyways maps: http://www.birdnature.com/flyways.html

However, Alaska and areas in Eastern Siberia represent a unique situation where major flyway systems cross continental boundaries (Attachment 2, fig. 2-1). Two major Asian flyways (the East Asian-Australasian and East Asian) include both Southeast Asia and the Arctic regions of Siberia, the Russian Far East, and Alaska. The East Asian-Australasian Flyway, defined primarily in the context of shorebird use, extends across 20 countries from the Siberian and Alaskan Arctic through North and Southeast Asia including U.S. trust territories in the Pacific to Australia and New Zealand.

Similarly, in North America, the Pacific Flyway extends from Arctic Canada, Alaska, and Eastern Siberia through coastal and western regions of Canada, the United States and Mexico, and on to Central and South America (Attachment 2, Fig. 2-2). Many migratory species that nest in Arctic Siberia, Alaska, and Canada follow the Pacific Flyway to wintering areas. Although not considered a major pathway, birds from both Eastern Siberia and Alaska intermingle in both the Pacific and Central Flyways. The overlap at the northern ends of these flyways and in Hawaii and Oceania establishes a path for potential disease transmission across continents and for mixing, re-assortment, and exchange of genetic material among strains from Eurasia and North America.

If highly pathogenic H5N1 avian influenza virus spreads to North America via migratory birds, the above analysis of the major flyways suggests that the virus would most likely arrive first in Alaska. Such a scenario is reasonable, as the contribution of Eurasian AI viruses to the genetic composition of viruses in North American migratory birds has already been demonstrated. Given the current knowledge on highly pathogenic H5N1 avian influenza distribution, the Working Group developed a prioritized sampling approach based on Alaska and the major North American flyways.

The following flyways are prioritized in decreasing order of importance:

1. Alaska, the Pacific Flyway, and Oceania

2. Central Flyway

3. Mississippi Flyway

4. Atlantic Flyway

[Mellie]

Re: Ornithology and HPAI

Here are some species from that same DOI Strategic Plan, link posted above:

Table 4-7. Suggested migratory bird species for highly pathogenic H5N1 avian influenza surveillance in the four North American flyways.

Pacific Flyway

Ranking:

Primary:
Tundra Swan (Western Population)
Lesser Snow Goose (Wrangel Island Population)
Northern Pintail
Long-billed Dowitcher
Red Knot (small numbers)
Pacific Golden Plover (small numbers)
Ruddy Turnstone (very small numbers)

Secondary:
Black Brant (Pacific Population)
Cackling Goose
Pacific Greater White-fronted Goose
Mallard
American Wigeon
American Green-winged Teal
Northern Shoveler

Central Flyway

Ranking:

Primary:
Lesser Sandhill Crane (Mid-continent)
Tundra Swan (Eastern Population)
Northern Pintail (low percentage from Alaska)
Pectoral Sandpiper
Buff-breasted Sandpiper
Long-billed Dowitcher

Secondary:
Greater White-fronted Goose (Mid-continent)
Lesser Snow Goose (Western Central Flyway)
Mallard
American Wigeon
American Green-winged Teal
Northern Shoveler

Mississippi Flyway

Ranking:

Primary:
Pectoral Sandpiper
Dunlin
Long-billed Dowitcher

Secondary:
Greater White-fronted Goose
Northern Pintail
Mallard
American Wigeon
American Green-winged Teal
Northern Shoveler
Lesser Scaup
Greater Yellow-legs
Lesser Yellow-legs
Ruddy Turnstone
Gray-cheeked Thrush

Atlantic Flyway

Ranking:

Primary:
Tundra Swan (Eastern Population)
Greater Scaup
Horned Grebe (possibly Europe/Greenland breeders)

Secondary:
Lesser Scaup
Canvasback
Long-tailed Duck (unknown east-west interchange)
Western Sandpiper
Least Sandpiper (do not breed in Asia)
Greater Yellow-legs (do not breed in Asia)
Black-bellied Plover