[Pepper]

Six types of birds have the flu

Published on December 14, 2004

Six species of birds have contracted avian influenza, the Livestock Department said yesterday.

The six are pigeons, Asian hornbills, a dove known as “nok khao fai”, and three local species: “nok kratib khee moo”, “ka nam lek” (small cormorant) and “sang seao” (drongo).

The infected birds were found in Chachoengsao, Saraburi, Na-khon Sawan and Lop Buri, the department said. As of yesterday, the watch list for bird-flu infections included 71 areas in 19 provinces.

The closely-monitored areas were located in Kamphaeng Phet, Nakhon Sawan, Phichit, Phitsa-nulok,Phetchabun, Sukhothai, Uttaradit, Uthai Thani, Suphan Buri, Angthong, Lop Buri, Sara-buri, Pathum Thani, Nakhon Pa-thom, Ratchaburi, Nakhon Na-yok, Samut Prakan, Nakhon Si Thammarat and Pattani.

The majority of chickens culled belonged to small-scale farmers, many of whom owned less than 100 fowls.

Suwit Wibulpholprasert, chairman of a strategic planning panel charged with combating bird flu, said Hong Kong authorities have agreed to carry out a joint research study with local counterparts to develop a vaccine for avian flu.

Suwit said his panel was close to completing a draft of six strategic plans to tackle the disease.

The first plan will focus on minimising bird-flu infection in the poultry industry.

The second will seek to contain the disease.

The third calls for an improved monitoring system to prevent the disease’s spread to humans as well as other birds.

The fourth plan promotes the development of a vaccine.

The final two plans seek to create an awareness campaign to be used for preventive measures and to combine ways of combating the bird-flu epidemic over the longer term.

Samatcha Hoonsara

The Nation
http://www.nationmultimedia.com/2004/12/14/headlines/index.php?news=headlines_15761976.html

[CanadaSue]

Little cormorant:

It's resident to that part of the world with limited seasonal travel. It's a common & widespread species, lays 3-5 eggs at a time, nesting in freshwater wetlands. It dives for fish. According to:

http://encyclopedia.codeboy.net/wikipedia/l/li/little_cormorant.html

Sounds to me as though it might share habitat with a number of waterfowl. Love to know how many of these they found & if it's excreting large amounts of virus as well as whether or not it's getting sick. Host species don't - so is this a new host or new species to be sickened?

[CanadaSue]

is a stork, resident of that part of Asia. It nests in trees near inland wetlands & lays 2-6 eggs. Like most storks, it wades & hunts frogs, small amphibians, etc. I don't know how common they are but it seems to me anytime you mention wetland, you have to think it shares habitat with many waterbirds.

[H2O]

Hong Kong authorities have agreed to carry out a joint research study with local counterparts to develop a vaccine for avian flu.

I think? This is more scare tactics, so people will get the vaccines, which I being one that believes all vaccines are bad ! There full of poisons and the long term effects will not be known for years in lots of cases.

For one example Poleo Vaccine SV-40

I know there are many of you whom believe in the vaccines and doctors and thats ok for you. I have lost all faith in them !
They do not have your best interest at heart these days. They seem to think that there training places there intellect beyond even God in some cases.

[Pepper]

H2O, you may or may not be correct. Personally, I think something is going on with this avian flu. I think it is far bigger than they are admitting. Time will tell.

Pepper

[CanadaSue]

Are a member of the finch family available as pets in the US. Known as 'nuns' here - I don't know birds - sorry. They're dry land birds, found in urban areas, grasslands, scrub & secondary growth. They're seed eaters & quite common in their home ranges. They're VERY social in the wild. They're roosters at night & will share roosts in a very crowded fashion. They breed year round, 4-5 meters off the ground. In a good year, they can have 4 broods. They're colony breeders & are happy under crowded breeding conditions. Jiuveniles often flock with juvies of other bird species.

They're often hunted by birds of prey. They considered pests in rice paddies & CHILDREN are often encouraged to destroy their nests. They're also netted in large numbers to be sold abroad as pets.

http://www.naturia.per.sg/buloh/birds/Lonchura_punctulata.htm

Now this sounds hairier in terms of potential interaction with many other avian speices as well as humans.

[CanadaSue]

are as successful as any pigeon or dove species & can be found in most environments. I couldn't find species specific information but will assume they behave much as pigeons do & thus can be found around human inhabited areas.

[CanadaSue]

Asia is lousy with them - a very common resident bird. They're found in open forests, lightly wooded areas & farm lands. 3-4 eggs in nests in trees. They're aggressive & will attack larger birds near their nests. They eat insects & other small animals.

http://encyclopedia.codeboy.net/wikipedia/b/bl/black_drongo.html

[CanadaSue]

Looking at these birds & the very little info I've obtained, I see lots of potential for lateral & vertical spread of H5N1. What remains to be seen is if it becomes hosted in these birds & how much virus they're capable of transmitting.

And we mustn't forget, how will the ability to infect these species change the genome - new honsts often provide opportunities for mutation. The fact that many of these interact with waterfowl & humans is worrisome.

[CanadaSue]

http://www.promedmail.org/pls/askus/f?p=2400:1001:3822530757743304267::NO::F2400_P1001_BACK_PAGE,F2400_P1001_PUB_MAIL_ID:1000,27442

I'll just pick up & comment on 1 paragraph:

***However, Dr. Charal said only 10 out of a total of 1011 bird samples tested positive for avian influenza. They were 3 out of 6 pigeon samples collected from Chachengsao province (1), Nakhon Sawan (3) and Lop Buri (2), 2 out of 15 Asian open-bill storks, one little cormorant and a red-collar dove from Nakhon Sawan, one scaly-breasted munia from Saraburi, and a black drongo from Lop Buri. All the infected birds were native ones he said. None of the samples of migratory birds tested positive.***

1% of birds sampled tested positive - wish we had some context for this. There is - sort of - H5N1 has been going through Thailand for a bit less than a year. These 6 species are ALL new species to be infected - both the # of species & %? 50% of pigeons, even if it was just a small sampling is a lot... & fast. I'd like to know if they were all sampled from one area or from different parts of the province. All the birds were native so they've picked it up either FROM some migratory birds or poultry in the region. The region has had poultry outbreaks this year.

The post also clarified what I snarked at yesterday - no transmission from birds. The good doctor meant birds from the WILD. Okay, I've calmed down - lol. That is true - there is no evidence of that happening but if it does, I'd be looking to the doves, pigeons or finches.

H2O - I wouldn't sweat the vaccine. They can research all they want right now but the fact remains until they isolate the specific pandemic strain - which the can only do after pandemic begins, there's no vax to worry about. It will take a year for the world's flu vax producers to make enough for 4.8% of the world's population - roughly the same amount I've 'high ended' in possible flu death estimates from pandemic H5N1. You & I ain't gonna be on anybody's short list for a flu vax for that strain.

[rb.]

Thanks for the research, Sue. I've been thinking about this today. DD has found two dead Grackles (Common Grackles, I believe) here in the last 2 weeks or so. One in the schoolyard that the kids were playing with (EWWWWWWW!) and one today in our backyard. I don't think they're supposed to be here in this season, so maybe it has to do with the cold, or a cat, but now I always think disease, too.

[CanadaSue]

Let me check but I believe grackles can get WNV.

And that's the part I hate, every time I see a bird 'acting strangely' or dead, my mind immediately leaps to the unusual or exotic. I just HATE having that kind of plague paranoia.

[rb.]

Thanks Sue, I'd be interested in anything you find. We had a pretty large Crow die off here a few years ago, and the Bluejays are few and far between now. Waiting to learn if one of the recent deaths here is WNV related. Was in the paper the other day.