Dead Teal in Calcutta Causes Panic
Recombinomics Commentary 22:35
January 20, 2008
The death of a migratory bird at the Santragachi Jheel created panic among the locals on Sunday.
The bird has been identified as the Lesser Whistling Teal, popularly known as Sharal.
Tucked away in the peaceful interiors of Santragachi, the lake has become a safe haven for thousands of migratory birds.
About 5,000 migratory birds, both from within the country and Trans-Himalayan birds, congregate at the lake every year.
The above comments describe a dead teal at Santragachi Jheel in Calcutta (see satellite map). Although the H5N1 outbreak in West Bengal has led to the testing of wild birds found in areas of confirmed H5N1, India has never reported H5N1 in a wild bird, dead or alive.
As noted above, wild birds from Siberia and China winter in northern India, and H5N1 has been reported in long range migratory birds China, Russia, and Mongolia since the spring of 2005, yet India has yet to report a wild bird infection.
Wild bird investigations frequently involve the collection of a small number of samples, which invariably test negative.
However, the deaths of large number of resident wild birds in association with confirmed poultry deaths, leaves little doubt that the wild birds are also H5n1 infected.
The recent deaths of crows and hawks in and around Calcutta may lead to enhanced surveillance and H5N1 positives, although the number of dead poultry being tested remains low.
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