Shiloh
Editor, Senior Moderator
Source: http://www.scmp.com/news/china/article/1216317/bird-fanciers-yangtze-river-delta-defy-virus-warnings
Bird fanciers in Yangtze River Delta defy virus warnings
Although the Yangtze River Delta is at centre of H7N9's spread, people there continue to keep birds as pets, as they have done for centuries
Wednesday, 17 April, 2013 [Updated: 04:08]
He Huifeng in Jiangsu and Zhejiang huifeng.he@scmp.com
Every day at dawn, bird lovers can still be seen taking their caged pets for walks in parks and lakeside areas across the Yangtze River Delta, despite the area being ground zero for the most recent avian flu outbreak...
...With hundreds of thousands of people in the region keeping birds as pets, it has created high demand for the illegal trapping of migratory birds, particularly in the wetlands of the Yangtze River Delta that are important habitats for East Asian migratory fowl.
But experts say that poaching can create health risks, as birds that migrate between continents may carry pathogens that could infect other native birds, particularly when they're grouped together in captivity...
Bird fanciers in Yangtze River Delta defy virus warnings
Although the Yangtze River Delta is at centre of H7N9's spread, people there continue to keep birds as pets, as they have done for centuries
Wednesday, 17 April, 2013 [Updated: 04:08]
He Huifeng in Jiangsu and Zhejiang huifeng.he@scmp.com
Every day at dawn, bird lovers can still be seen taking their caged pets for walks in parks and lakeside areas across the Yangtze River Delta, despite the area being ground zero for the most recent avian flu outbreak...
...With hundreds of thousands of people in the region keeping birds as pets, it has created high demand for the illegal trapping of migratory birds, particularly in the wetlands of the Yangtze River Delta that are important habitats for East Asian migratory fowl.
But experts say that poaching can create health risks, as birds that migrate between continents may carry pathogens that could infect other native birds, particularly when they're grouped together in captivity...
