Bird flu 'spills over' to otters and foxes in UK - BBC

The largest ever outbreak of vertebrate flu is spilling implicit into mammals, including otters and foxes successful the UK.

Figures released to the BBC amusement the microorganism has led to the decease of astir 208 cardinal birds astir the satellite and astatine slightest 200 recorded cases successful mammals.

There volition present beryllium much targeted surveillance and investigating of animals and humans exposed to the microorganism successful the UK.

The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) inactive advises that avian flu is chiefly a illness of birds, but experts crossed the globe are looking astatine the risks of it spilling implicit into different species.

Worldwide, the microorganism has been recovered successful a scope of mammals, including grizzly bears successful America and mink successful Spain, arsenic good arsenic successful dolphin and seals.

In the UK, the Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) has tested 66 mammals, including seals, and recovered 9 otters and foxes were affirmative for highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) H5N1.

It is believed they had fed connected dormant oregon sick chaotic birds infected with the virus.

The animals were recovered to person a mutation of the microorganism that could marque it easier to infect mammals, but determination was nary grounds of transmission betwixt mammals.

The APHA added that determination was "a precise debased likelihood of immoderate wide corruption successful GB mammals".

Prof Ian Brown, APHA's manager of technological services, said: "A sick oregon a dormant chaotic vertebrate contains an atrocious batch of virus. So scavenging mammals that volition beryllium opportunistic and predate connected dormant oregon sick birds volition beryllium exposed to precise ample quantities of virus. That gives a anticipation for the microorganism to participate a big colonisation that it doesn't usually support in."

Prof Brown said that the UK's nationalist avian flu taskforce was present ramping up its surveillance of cases successful mammals and genome investigation of the microorganism itself portion keeping a adjacent oculus connected its dispersed successful planetary populations of chaotic birds.

"The microorganism is perfectly connected the march. And it's astir singular - it's a azygous strain," helium said, adding that greater planetary enactment to tackle its dispersed was needed.

He told the BBC helium was "acutely alert of the risks" of avian flu becoming a pandemic similar Covid-19.

He said: "This planetary dispersed is simply a concern. We bash request globally to look astatine caller strategies, those planetary partnerships, to get connected apical of this disease.

"If we don't lick the occupation crossed the globe, we're going to proceed to person that risk."

Since October 2021, erstwhile the latest outbreak began, determination person been 5 confirmed quality cases of the H5N1 virus, including 1 successful the UK, and 1 death, successful China.

The World Health Organization (WHO) said that, successful the past 20 years, there person been astir 870 cases of quality infection with the avian influenza H5N1 microorganism reported from 21 countries. Of these, 457 were fatal.

It said the microorganism has "not acquired the quality for sustained transmission among humans. Thus the likelihood of human-to-human dispersed is low."

But it added: "Due to the perpetually evolving quality of influenza viruses, WHO continues to accent the value of planetary surveillance to observe and show virological, epidemiological, and objective changes associated with emerging oregon circulating influenza viruses that whitethorn impact quality (or animal) health, and timely virus-sharing for hazard assessment."

Dr Wenqing Zhang, the caput of WHO's planetary influenza programme, said of the menace posed by the microorganism spilling over: "It is precise concerning - the hazard that that volition beryllium causing the adjacent influenza pandemic and the hazard has been expanding implicit the years arsenic reflected successful the fig of outbreaks successful animals arsenic good arsenic a fig of infections successful humans."

Intergovernmental organisation the World Organisation of Animal Health (WOAH) told the BBC it has recorded astir 42 cardinal idiosyncratic cases successful home and chaotic birds since the outbreak began successful October 2021.

Almost 15 cardinal home birds, including poultry, person died from the disease, and much than 193 cardinal much person been culled.

It besides shows 119 outbreaks affecting mammals, with astir 200 idiosyncratic cases recorded - though a WOAH spokesperson warned the dispersed to mammals was apt to beryllium under-reported.

Dr Gregorio Torres, WOAH's caput of science, said determination had been an summation successful reports of non-avian taxon being affected by the microorganism implicit the past 18 months.

He said it "could beryllium a awesome of precise delicate surveillance - an indicator that we are doing a bully job".

But helium added: "On the different hand, it could besides beryllium an indicator that determination is simply a alteration successful the epidemiology of the illness oregon a alteration successful the dynamic of the disease. And that volition necessitate adjacent monitoring.

"There is simply a hazard for further transmission betwixt taxon and we cannot underestimate the imaginable adaptation to humans."

In a caller report, the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) warned that the "rapid and accordant acquisition of the mutation successful mammals whitethorn connote this microorganism has a propensity to origin zoonotic infections", meaning it could leap to humans.

The bureau besides raised concerns astir constricted chaotic vertebrate and mammal surveillance and genomic information postulation successful England, and warned that determination was not capable investigating of radical who had been interaction with infected birds.

It is present looking to make caller ways of investigating humans who person been exposed to the illness but whitethorn beryllium asymptomatic

Dr Meera Chand, incidental manager for avian influenza astatine UKHSA, said: "Latest grounds suggests that the avian influenza viruses presently circulating successful birds bash not dispersed easy to people. We stay vigilant for immoderate grounds of changing risk.

"There person precocious been immoderate detections of avian influenza viruses successful a tiny fig of mammals successful the UK. However, the hazard appraisal conducted by UKHSA and partners did not place immoderate signals of accrued hazard to the wide nationalist from avian influenza astatine present."

Meanwhile, the nationalist is being warned not to interaction immoderate dormant oregon sick birds, but to study immoderate dormant birds of prey, 3 oregon much dormant chaotic waterfowl oregon gulls oregon 5 oregon much dormant birds of immoderate taxon that they find to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs.