Is HPAI H5N1 of concern for the conservation of wild birds?
With the apparently high mortality rates seen in some wild bird species, the continued spread of Asian lineage HPAI H5N1 is of conservation concern. It is estimated that in one outbreak in China, at Qinghai Lake, as much as 10% of the world’s Bar-headed Goose population died. There are a number of globally threatened waterbirds in Eurasia, with small populations, that would be at risk from enhanced mortality resulting from infection with HPAI H5N1. Implementation of high quality biosecurity around poultry would not only isolate poultry from possible infection by HPAI infected wild birds, but would help reduce ‘spill-back’ of the virus into other wild bird populations.
