North American Migratory Flyways
#18,404
The fall bird migration season is well underway, and Canada - after going more than 6 months without reporting any outbreaks of H5N1 in poultry - has reported a steep rise in outbreaks since the third week of October.
In last 10 days of the month, the CFIA reported 11 outbreaks.
Over the first 8 days of November, the CFIA has added 10 more outbreaks (see list below).
Meanwhile, in the United States, the USDA is also reporting 21 outbreaks in poultry over the past 30 days (see chart below).
According to a brief statement (below) from the USDA, we know that the Oregon poultry & swine outbreak of H5N1 was due to genotype D1.2, while last month we learned that the Washington state outbreak (and spillover into humans) was from genotype D1.1.
Additionally poultry outbreaks in California, along with the recent outbreak in poultry in Utah, have been identified as from the bovine B3.13 genotype, which is primarily associated with cattle.
The genotype affecting Canada's poultry this far has not been announced, however the CFIA website states: To date, the genotype B3.13 found in U.S. dairy cattle has not been detected in birds or any other animals in Canada.
Thus far, more than 100 genotypes of the H5N1 clade 2.3.4.4b virus have been identified in North America, and scores of other genotypes are circulating around the globe.
This week, South Korea reported an HPAI H5N3 subtype in wild birds for the first time, and the UK reported more than 2 dozen dead wild birds from HPAI H5N5, and an outbreak of HPAI H5N5 at a poultry farm in Yorkshire.
A reminder that the HPAI H5 family of viruses continues to expand and diversify, and that we face multiple credible threats here, not just H5N1 in dairy cows.
The amount of HPAI H5 in wild birds - and in the environment - is expected to rise as we head deeper into the fall and winter, and all flock owners (large and small) need to increase their biosecurity (see USDA's Defend the Flock).
And while the risks are believed small, the CDC also offers the following advice to pet owners on avian flu..
