SURVEILLANCE FOR AVIAN INFLUENZA IN WILD BIRDS

On 1 October Defra announced changes to the GB surveillance strategy for 2008 – 2009. Under the changes,skilled wild bird ecologists and wardens will make year-round patrols in designated reserves. They will screen andassess both live and dead wild birds, in particular gulls, ducks, geese, swans and waders, for avian influenza testing.Birds shot as part of normal wildfowling activities will not be sampled because the extended warden patrols will provide the coverage required. Other methods of sampling, including sampling of shot birds may still be used ifneeded in future, for example if a case of highly pathogenic avian influenza in wild birds resulted in a Wild Bird Control Area being declared.

In addition, members of the public are from now on being asked to report incidents only where they find 10 or more dead birds in the same place and at the same time. The likelihood of a wild bird found dead being infected with avian influenza remains very small. Dead wild birds are screened because they are a useful source for sampling and not because their death is likely to be due to avian influenza.If members of the public are concerned about dead wild birds that they have found, they should follow the guidance on the Defra website.