A hunted duck downed in Oregon has
tested positive for avian influenza, but the sample was too small for lab
worker to identify the strain.
It might be a low-pathogenic strain
which would not present much danger to commercial poultry flocks.
It’s the first and only finding of
avian influenza in migrating waterfowl returning from the north.
Those flying north in the spring are
believed responsible for the loss of more than 43 million commercial birds
across the United States.
There were also outbreaks around
Christmas time in the lower mainland area of British Columbia and three in the
spring in Oxford County, Ontario.
