What is the impact of HPAI on wild bird populations?
Historically, there has been no known negative impact on wild bird populations associated with LPAI even though AIV infections in wild birds are widespread. However, outbreaks of the Asian strain of HPAI H5N1 have caused significant mortality in wild birds in China and Switzerland. The prevalence, mortality and contagiousness of H5N1 in wild birds seem to be low. HPAI outbreaks in wild birds have largely been scattered and limited. The direct impact of HPAI on bird populations is much smaller than indirect impacts as a result of negative public perceptions.
