California-Declares Bird Flu in Cattle

[LoreD]

California Declares an Emergency Over Bird Flu in Cattle​

Officials have discovered the virus in 645 dairy herds, more than in any other state so far.

California Declares an Emergency Over Bird Flu in Cattle

Officials have discovered the virus in 645 dairy herds, more than in any other state so far.

www.nytimes.com

“All these infections in so many species around us is paving a bigger and bigger runway for the virus to potentially evolve to infect humans better and transmit between humans,” said Dr. Nahid Bhadelia, the director of the Boston University Center on Emerging Infectious Diseases.

The announcement followed news earlier in the day that an individual in Louisiana had been hospitalized with bird flu, the first infected American to become severely ill.

The outbreak in dairy cattle is thought to have begun in Texas early this year. As of Wednesday, 865 infected herds had been identified in 16 states.

 

[LoreD]

Bird flu spillover to other species poses global health threat, experts warn​

Bird flu spillover to other species poses global health threat, experts warn

Avian influenza, commonly known as bird flu, has been reported in 108 countries and territories over five continents in the last three years

www.voanews.com

GENEVA —
International human and animal health experts warn the H5N1 avian influenza is evolving quickly and posing a global health threat as the virus is increasingly crossing species barriers and infecting a wide range of domestic and wild mammals.

He noted that avian influenza, commonly known as bird flu, has been reported in 108 countries and territories over five continents in the last three years.

“The impacts of HPAI have spilled over into wildlife, with more than 500 bird species and over 70 mammalian species affected, including endangered animals like the California condor and polar bears,” she said. “The biodiversity impacts, particularly among seabirds and marine mammals, and disruption of fragile ecosystems, such as the Antarctic region, are concerning.”

 

[Lou]

Yeah, I saw that too. Wasn't I just saying somewhere in the forum that every time I see stuff like that I'm glad I don't have to worry bout that stuff.

Although I guess I still should be concerned about the global health threat and the wildlife.

 

[LoreD]

'Unprecedented': How bird flu became an animal pandemic​

'Unprecedented': How bird flu became an animal pandemic

Bird flu is decimating wildlife around the world and is now spreading in cows. In the handful of human cases seen so far it has been extremely deadly.

www.bbc.com

Relatively few people have caught the virus so far, but the H5N1 subtype has had a high mortality rate in those that do: more than 50% of people known to become infected have died. In March 2024, the US discovered its second case in humans, which was also the first instance of mammal-to-human transmission. By May 2024, the first death from a rare H5N2 subtype of the virus was reported in Mexico. Then in August, the US saw its first hospitalisation for H5 avian influenza with no known exposure to a sick animal.

Moreover, the impact on animals has already been devastating. Since it was first identified, the H5 strain of avian influenza and its variants have led to the slaughter of over half a billion farmed birds. Wild-bird deaths are estimated in the millions, with around 600,000 in South America since 2023 alone – and both numbers potentially far higher due to the difficulties of monitoring.

At least 26 species of mammals have also been infected. In Denmark, millions of mink were culled after bird flu spread through fur farms. In France, a captive bear was found to be infected, as have free-ranging bears in Canada. Among wild mammals, scavengers and marine mammals have been particularly badly hit. The virus has killed ten of thousands of seals and sea lions from Quebec down to Chile, Argentina and Peru - with concerns rising that it may be adapting to spread more easily between mammals and then back to birds. In Antarctica's Northern Weddell Sea, Begeman and her colleagues sampled around 120 carcasses from different species, including several Antarctic fur seals. The virus was detected at four of the 10 sites they visited.

 

[LoreD]

Yeah, I saw that too. Wasn't I just saying somewhere in the forum that every time I see stuff like that I'm glad I don't have to worry bout that stuff.

Although I guess I still should be concerned about the global health threat and the wildlife.

It has already made the jump to humans, and with a 50% mortality rate, it might be worse than Covid.

 

[Lou]

It has already made the jump to humans, and with a 50% mortality rate, it might be worse than Covid.

Oh, ****. now I am worried about too.
Not sure I feel bad for the livestock or farmers, tho.

 

[LoreD]

Oh, ****. now I am worried about too.
Not sure I feel bad for the livestock or farmers, tho.

We will have endless repeats of pandemics unless the large scale factory farming stops.

 

[LoreD]

If it can infect lions, tigers, cheetahs, and polar bears; it can infect us.

'Unprecedented': How bird flu became an animal pandemic

Bird flu is decimating wildlife around the world and is now spreading in cows. In the handful of human cases seen so far it has been extremely deadly.

www.bbc.com

Along this route, the virus has diverged to infect a wide variety of mammals – including 21 species in the US alone. And with such cross-over, the opportunity for both human contact and mammal-to-mammal spread has increased. In December, the number of cases among cattle in the US had surged, with more than 800 farms in 16 states affected. Sporadic infections have been detected in a wide range of other mammals in the US, including mountain lions, skunks, dolphins, polar bears, domestic cats, mice and foxes. Meanwhile, an H5N1 virus strain was detected in two pigs on a farm in Oregon in October. The animals had been mixed with poultry on the farm.

Of particular concern in Uhart's home nation of Argentina, has been the virus's spread in wild mammals. Her study into its adaptation to such mammals showed the same virus was nearly identical in fur seals and sea lions, and that many of the adaptations they detected were also present in a human case in Chile. "For all we know it could already be further adapting to spread between mammals – and we need to detect that as quickly as possible."

And while this is worrying in terms of the future impact on humans, it is also already proving devastating to other mammals: more than 17,000 elephant seals are thought to have died from the virus during the 2023 breeding season, including 70% of all the season's pups. Since no one knows how many adults went on to die at sea from the virus, Uhart and her colleagues are now waiting apprehensively for the creatures return from the ocean this spring. If enough pregnant females come back, there will be capacity for recovery, Urhart says. If not, or if the virus hits again this year, "the impact could be major".