A new strain of avian inluenza that can infect people has been detected in blue-winged teal bird in Manitoba, the first time the H5N6 strain has been detected in North America.
It differs from the H5N1 that has caused havoc in the North American poultry industry, but is no threat to people.
In April China reported 20 people were infected with the H5N6 strain.
The report of the Canadian case came to light in a report from the World Organization for Animal Health.
There have been 274 outbreaks of H5N1 in Canada, leading to the death or culling of more than six million birds.
Public Health Canada said about H5N6 that it is a highly-pathogenic avian influenza virus that can cause severe disease and high mortality in infected poultry.
Outbreaks of H5N6 were reported in birds in Laos, China, and Vietnam prior to the report of the first human case in China in 2014.
Human cases of H5N6 have continued to be reported since, with a marked increase in detections in 2021. Although it is possible that this increase coincides with heightened surveillance and diagnostic systems resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic, other factors like the spread of avian influenza viruses in poultry populations likely also play a role in the increased number of cases .
