G&FC Checking Ducks for Avian Influenza

G&FC Checking Ducks for Avian Influenza

The outbreak of avian influenza in Asia several years ago has put public health officials on the alert in the U.S. But wildlife managers also play an integral part in monitoring for signs of the virus.

The Arkansas Game and Fish Commission currently is in the midst of a testing and monitoring program to do its part for a nationwide surveillance and early detection plan. The monitoring program is being conducted by various state and federal agencies.

Commission biologists are trapping ducks and shorebirds around the state and collecting samples from the birds for avian influenza testing. AGFC has completed the collection of shorebird samples and is making progress toward its goal of more than 300 ducks, including mallards, green-winged teal, shovelers and pintails.

"It's like an early warning system," explained Luke Naylor, AGFC waterfowl program coordinator. "If something were to happen with avian influenza, hopefully this way we'd be able to see it."

AGFC biologists trap ducks in nets and then use cotton swabs to collect small samples from the birds. The samples are sent to the Arkansas Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory in Little Rock, where they are tested for the presence of the virus.

In addition to AGFC's testing, Wildlife Services of the U.S. Department of Agriculture is collecting hunter-killed ducks in Arkansas for additional samples to be tested.

All results to date have been negative, Naylor said.

Avian influenza refers to influenza A (H5N1) viruses found chiefly in birds. These viruses occur naturally in wild birds worldwide, but the birds don't usually get sick from them. Avian influenza, however, is very contagious among birds and can make them very sick or kill them.

Infections also can occur in humans. Most of the reported and confirmed cases of human infections in Asia, Africa and the Near East resulted from contact with infected domestic poultry, though a few rare cases of human-to-human transmission of the virus have been documented.

What concerns scientists most is that, because all viruses can change, the highly pathogenic form of H5N1 one day could be able to infect humans and spread rapidly.

Because these viruses do not commonly infect humans, there is little or no immune protection against them in the human population. If H5N1 virus were to gain the capacity to spread easily from person to person, an influenza pandemic (worldwide outbreak of disease) could begin.

No sign of the highly pathogenic form of the H5N1 virus has been detected in North America.