H5N1 Confirmed in Domestic Ducks in Bavaria
Recombinomics Commentary
August 26, 2007
The Keulung of 160,000 ducks still began on Saturday evening. "after my knowledge that is the largest mass mass action mass action, which gave, says it in Germany in connection with the bird flu in a utilizable animal existence ever" to undersecretary of state Otmar Bernhard (CSU) concerned
The above translation indicates the culling of 160,000 ducks in Bavaria is the largest bird flu linked culling in Germany to date. The culling follows Friedrich-Loeffler-Institut on the island Riems confirmation of H5N1 in five of the 400 ducklings that had died. Although the location is in a region where there were multiple H5N1 wild bird confirmations in 2006, the current outbreak is likely to be linked to the recent outbreaks reported in Bavaria, Saxon-Anhalt, Saxony, and Thuringia. Although these recent outbreaks were during the summer, when long range migration is minimal, the number of confirmed wild bird cases this summer exceeded the record number confirmed in 2006. The recent outbreaks were most closely related to H5N1 previously described in a massive wild bird outbreak in Tyva/Mongolia last year.
Media reports have speculated that the farm infection was linked to hay, which would have been exposed to wild birds. Sequence analysis of H5N1 from the domestic ducks should help resolve its origin. However, the extensive number of wild bird outbreaks in central and southern Germany, including wild ducks near Munich, strongly suggests the infections were linked to H5N1 circulating in wild birds.
The massive cull following multiple reports in wild birds raises additional issues about surveillance in neighboring countries. France has reported three outbreaks in regions near Germany, and the Czech Republic has reported one wild bird infection as well as multiple outbreaks in domestic poultry. However, the Czech sequences are distinct from the sequences in Germany.
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