In a quickly evolving situation, four European countries — Denmark, France, Germany, and Sweden — have officially registered the season’s first outbreaks of highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) in poultry.
The disease has returned to Laos, where a human infection has also been recorded. Additional outbreaks have occurred among European poultry flocks, as well as those of Japan, Kazakhstan and Russia. HPAI virus has also been detected in wild birds in South Korea, and western Europe.
New cases in Europe
Over the past week, Germany has officially recorded its first outbreaks of HPAI in poultry. All were in the northern state of Mecklenburg-West Pomerania, where HPAI viruses have recently been detected in wild birds, according to the reports to the World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE).
In four of the latest outbreaks, the H5N8 virus was detected. First cases were in a mixed poultry flock of around 250 birds. Within days, the disease had also been confirmed in two commercial flocks of laying hens, and one of turkeys.
The H5N5 HPAI virus variant was detected in the other German outbreak. Affected was a mixed backyard flock in the same area.
First cases of HPAI have been recorded in France. In the first week of November, the H5N8 virus was detected in poultry at a pet shop in the Haute Corse region of the Mediterranean island of Corsica. Detection followed symptoms in the poultry at the shop. More than 100 of the birds died, and the remaining 464 have been destroyed. HPAI has been absent from France for the past three years.
Following detection of the H5N8 HPAI virus earlier this week, around 25,000 hens have been culled at a farm in Randers, according to the Danish Veterinary and Food Administration. This municipality is in the Central Denmark Region (Midtjylland), in the east of the Jutland peninsula.
In Sweden, HPAI has been detected in a turkey flock in the southern county of Skåne, according to the Swedish Board of Agriculture.
Further outbreaks in The Netherlands, the United Kingdom
Over the past week, the veterinary authorities of two European states have confirmed new HPAI outbreaks in poultry to the OIE.
According to the Dutch veterinary authority, there are have been two new outbreaks linked to the H5N8 virus, bringing the country’s total since October to four.
First to be confirmed was an outbreak in Lutjegast in Groningen. Representing the first outbreak in this province, the affected farm had more than 47,000 poultry, 113 of which died. More recently, the infection was found in a flock of around 22,000 ducks at a farm at Terwolde in Gelderland. This province is where the country’s previous cases in poultry have been recorded.
In the United Kingdom (U.K.), a second H5N8 HPAI outbreak has been registered with the OIE. The latest to be affected was flock of around 46,000 broiler breeders in the western English county of Hereford.
Last week, an avian influenza prevention zone (AIPZ) was declared across the whole of England, according the agriculture department, Defra. The move followed the raising of the risk level to “high,” and with the agreement of the Scottish and Welsh governments, the whole of Great Britain is covered by the AIPZ.
Since the autumn/fall season began, the European Commission (EC) has registered a total of 14 HPAI outbreaks in poultry in Europe. In its latest update (to November 15), its Animal Disease Notification System had recorded eight outbreaks in Germany, four in The Netherlands, and two in the U.K. Total outbreaks for 2020 up to the same date was 336. This figured included 273 in Hungary, the most of which was in June.
More cases in poultry in Kazakhstan, Russia
In Kazakhstan, one new outbreak of HPAI linked to the H5N8 virus subtype has been registered with the OIE. According to the agriculture ministry, the virus was detected at the end of October in a flock of almost 603,000 poultry in the southeastern region of Almaty. Around 68,000 of the birds died, and the rest of the flock was destroyed.
This outbreak brings the total in Kazakhstan since mid-September to 10. All previous cases reported to the OIE were in small village or backyard flocks in the country’s northern regions.
Over the past week, Russia’s agriculture ministry has confirmed to the OIE seven new outbreaks of HPAI in poultry.
Among these were one backyard and a small farm in Rostov oblast (Southern federal district). Further east, four backyard flocks were infected in different regions of the Urals and Volga federal districts. One of these represented a first outbreak in the Khanty-Mansi Autonomous Okrug. There was also an outbreak at a farm with around 175,000 turkeys in the Republic of Tatarstan. Presence of the H5N8 virus variant was detected at each location.
Based on reports lodged with the OIE, these latest outbreaks bring Russia’s total since August of this year to 67. More than three million poultry have been directly involved in these outbreaks.
H5N1 HPAI returns to Laos, new human case
Following an absence of almost two years, the H5N1 HPAI virus has been detected in Laos (Lao People’s Democratic Republic). According to the official report to the OIE, presence of the virus was confirmed in two village flocks in the province of Saravane in mid-August and mid-September. More than 500 of the 1,539 poultry died, the veterinary authority reported. Fate of the remaining birds has not been reported.
Also known as Salavan, the province is located in the south of the country, and borders Thailand.
The country’s health ministry has registered a new human case of infection with an avian influenza A(H5N1) virus.
According to the official report to the World Health Organization (WHO), the patient was a one-year-old girl. During October, she developed respiratory symptoms and a fever. She was discharged from hospital after a few days. A specimen tested positive for the H5N1 virus. Domestic poultry were kept at the girl’s home, and these were suspected as the source of the girl’s infection although no virus was detected at the premises.
This was the first human case of avian influenza A(H5N1) virus reported to the WHO this year, and the third case in Laos since 2004. Two previous cases were reported in 2007, and both patients died.
According to the Centre for Health Protection in Hong Kong, the patient lived in Saravane.
One further outbreak in Japanese poultry
A Kagawa prefecture farm with 11,000 broiler breeders is the latest poultry premises in Japan to be confirmed with HPAI. Presence of the H5N8 virus variant was detected after 16 of the birds died suddenly, according to the official OIE report.
Since the start of this month, the agriculture ministry has registered three outbreaks, all in the same prefecture, which is located on the southern island of Shikoku.
At the end of October, Japan Times reported that the same virus had been detected in wild bird droppings on the northernmost island, Hokkaido.
HPAI detected in wild birds in six western European countries
Over the past week, Belgium, Denmark, the Irish Republic, and the U.K. have alerted the OIE to the first cases of HPAI among their respective wild bird populations. Additional cases have been confirmed by Germany and The Netherlands.
According to Belgium’s veterinary authority, five wild birds have tested positive for the H5N8 HPAI virus since the start of November. These were discovered at three different locations in West Flanders.
The same virus has been detected in wild birds at three different locations in England. The official report to the OIE identifies a total of eight wild birds tested positive for the virus. All locations were in southern England — in the counties of Devon, Dorset, and Gloucestershire.
A swan found dead in County Londonderry has also tested positive for avian flu, reports the Northern Ireland agriculture ministry. The virus has been provisionally identified as H5N8 variant. With the disease risk assessed as moderate, poultry farmers in the region have been warned to maintain high levels of biosecurity.
Meanwhile, the agriculture ministry of the Republic of Ireland has confirmed to the OIE that a falcon found dead at the end of October was infected with the H5N8 HPAI virus.
Following a recent report of the detection of H5N5 HPAI virus in a wild bird in Denmark, the national animal health agency has confirmed the first cases of linked to the H5N8 variant. Five birds found dead at two locations in the region of Southern Denmark (Jutland) were infected.
In recent weeks, Germany and The Netherlands have registered with the OIE the first cases of H5N8 HPAI in their respective wild bird populations.
Over the past few days, both countries have confirmed further cases. A total of 75 cases have been identified in Germany (in Schleswig-Holstein and Lower Saxony). The 31 Dutch cases were in the provinces of North Holland, South Holland and Friesland.
Up to November 15, there have been 254 outbreaks of HPAI in wild birds in Europe so far this year, according to the EC. That was an increase of 124 from the previous week’s total, comprising 103 in Germany, nine in The Netherlands, seven in Denmark, three in Belgium, and one in the U.K. In addition, the EC has registered four HPAI cases in captive birds, only one of which has occurred has March of 2020.
HPAI virus in more wild birds in South Korea
Surveillance of wild birds has revealed two ducks — one each in the provinces of South Chungcheong and Gyeonggi — have tested positive for the H5N8 HPAI virus.
Earlier this month, the same virus variant was detected in wild bird droppings in the same provinces. Yonhap news agency has reported one further similar detection in Gyeonggi province. Authorities have extended travel restrictions to cover the area around this latest detection. So far, no outbreaks have occurred among South Korean poultry flocks.
South Africa report mild flu virus in ostriches for the first time
Between August 4 and September 7, a new strain of low-pathogenic avian influenza (LPAI) virus was detected for the first time in South Africa.(
According to the report to the official report to the OIE, 214 ostriches out of the 9,180 birds in 11 commercial flocks tested positive for an H7 LPAI virus. Further typing of the virus was reported to be unsuccessful
View our continuing coverage of the global avian influenza situation.
