Hundreds of dead birds have reportedly been falling from the sky in dystopian scenes in Pennsylvania.
The culprit is thought to be the H5N1 bird flu strain that has been devastating poultry and dairy farms across the US and sporadically infecting people.
Janine Tancredi, the co-executive director of The Wilderz at Pocono Wildlife, told local news: ‘People were reporting like birds falling from the sky.
Hundreds of snow geese have died in Pennsylvania due to bird flu.
About 50 miles north, the Pocono Wildlife and Rehabilitation Center has taken in dozens of birds showing symptoms of the bird flu since mid-December.
It has been reported that in dystopian scenes in Pennsylvania, hundreds of dead birds have been dropping from the sky.
The culprit is believed to be the H5N1 strain of bird flu that has been destroying dairy and poultry farms throughout the United States and occasionally infecting humans.
Numerous snow geese tested positive for the virus, according to a Poconos wildlife nonprofit.
Local news reported that “people were reporting like birds falling from the sky,” said Janine Tancredi, co-executive director of Pocono Wildlife’s The Wilderz.
They become so neurologically disabled that they lose track of their whereabouts, which may seem unrealistic. They’re slamming into trees. Houses are being struck by them. “.”.
All 35 snow geese that her team tested for H5N1 in the last few days tested positive, but she believes the actual number of afflicted birds is “probably more like thousands.”. “…
Residents are being asked to keep pets away from carcasses and waterways, and to avoid touching dead birds or dead birds.
Pennsylvania has not seen any human H5N1 cases, but people in ten other states have contracted the virus.
In Pennsylvania, bird flu has killed hundreds of snow geese. Officials in charge of wildlife say they have “never seen it this bad.”.
Beginning in 2022, H5N1 has spread to farms across all 50 states, decimating herds of cattle and poultry.
The virus did not infect someone who had come into close contact with a sick cow until April 2024.
Since then, 65 additional human cases linked to the current outbreak have been documented, including one in Louisiana that required hospitalization due to a severe infection.
Dairy herds were associated with the majority of exposures (40 cases), with California accounting for 36 of these cases, followed by Michigan and Texas, each of which reported one or two cases.
23 exposures were caused by poultry farms and culling operations, with Washington and Colorado having the highest concentrations (11 and 9 cases, respectively).
Two cases had unidentified exposure sources in California and Missouri, and only one case—reported in Louisiana—involved other animal exposure.
Up until now, the severe case in Louisiana has been an exception. Pink eye, a slight fever, sore throat, and exhaustion have been the most common symptoms of mild infections. However, Louisiana authorities stated that this more severe instance of the illness was “not unexpected.”.
Given that those who have become ill have come into contact with infected farm animals, the CDC maintains that there is little overall risk to the public.
In Minnesota, USDA employees are seen cleaning a turkey farm. Since the outbreak started in 2022, poultry herds in all 50 states have been killed by the bird flu.
Wildlife officials in Pennsylvania estimate that thousands of geese may have died from bird flu.
However, states are growing more worried.
A state of emergency has been imposed in California, where 37 human infections have been reported, due to concerns that the disease could spread to other states.
This is not entirely unrealistic, as new data indicates that the virus may change to make human infection easier.
The virus in the critically ill Louisiana patient who had come into contact with backyard poultry was sequenced by the CDC, which then compared it to samples of other H5N1 viruses from dairy cows, wild birds, poultry, and previously treated human patients.
The fact that the Louisiana patient’s virus did not exhibit the mutations observed in the poultry on the patient’s property suggests that the virus did not already possess these mutations at the time of the patient’s infection.
Rather, these alterations most likely occurred as the virus spread throughout the patient’s body.
Better yet, the modifications did not significantly change the virus’s general “avian” traits. Infecting birds rather than humans was still the virus’s primary genetic characteristic.
Livestock disease has a severe negative impact on farmers’ profits.
Additionally, farmers’ farms produce less food as they reduce the number of poultry and dairy cows they keep, which results in a limited supply and higher prices for consumers.
According to the Pennsylvania Game Commission, bird flu is suspected of killing 200 snow geese in the greater Allentown area, demonstrating that the disease affects more than just farm birds.
The virus, like all flus, is mainly transmitted by airborne droplets that enter a person’s mouth, eyes, or nose.
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Since the middle of December, the Pocono Wildlife and Rehabilitation Center, located about 50 miles north, has taken in dozens of birds exhibiting signs of bird flu.
“There were tremors, a lot of head shaking, and very uncoordinated,” stated Sampson Metzgar, the center’s avian specialist. They have trouble balancing; they will walk a short distance before taking a long seat. It almost seems as though the birds are confused and lost. “.”.
In the meantime, Ms. Tancredi of Pocono Wildlife’s Wilderz stated that her staff is “euthanizing on arrival.”. “…
There isn’t really anything we can do. “.”.
She said that hundreds of dead birds were found when she and her team arrived at a quarry in the Nazareth region on Thursday.
The overall number of birds impacted is “probably more like thousands,” she continued. “…
