#11,939
While Europe's 9-country H5N8 outbreak is widely believed to have arrived via birds migrating from their summer roosts in northern Russia, we haven't seen any reports of the virus in Russia since a report from the OIE: Russia - HPAI H5 In Wild & Migratory Birds last June.
Today, however, the OIE is reporting two recent outbreaks of HPAI H5 clade 2.3.4.4 - albeit without the NA gene type identified - in the Republic of Kalmykia which borders the Caspian Sea.While H5N8 seems likely, we have also seen several reassortments evolve out of HPAI H5N8 over the past couple of years, including H5N2 and H5N1.
This from the OIE.
Source of the outbreak(s) or origin of infection
Unknown or inconclusive
Epidemiological comments
Genome of H5 avian influenza virus was detected in 4 samples from carcasses of domestic birds (goose, hen, guinea fowl). Sequence analysis of the isolates showed that they belonged to the Asian HPAI virus H5 lineage A/Guandong/1/96, clade 2.3.4.4.
