Avian Influenza: Surveillance of Wild Birds

1
Avian InfluenzaSurveillance of Wild Birds
U.S. Department of the Interior U.S. Fish and
Wildlife Service
H. Dale Hall, Director U.S. Fish and Wildlife
Service
2
The National Strategy

• Preparedness and Communication
• Surveillance and Detection
• Response and Containment

3
Other USFWS Roles Within The National Strategy

• Protecting public and employee health on Service
  lands
• Regulating trade in wildlife and
• wildlife products
• Smuggling interdiction

4
Interagency Strategic Plan

• Surveillance and Detection

• Live birds

• Hunter taken birds

• Investigation of mortality events

5
Surveillance and Detection
6
Flyway Councils

• Migratory bird management within each flyway by
  the Flyway Councils
• FWS will work with each Flyway Council to step
  down national strategic plan
• Individual flyway states will step down plan to
  state-level surveillance plans

7
Live Bird Surveillance

• FWS biologists and cooperators will collect
  samples from live-captured migratory birds
• Collections will be made as part of current FWS
  and USGS monitoring work
• New field stations will be set-up in remote
  locations

8
Hunter-Taken Bird Surveillance

• Waterfowl check stations are used in waterfowl
  harvest estimates
• Provide an opportunity to collect additional
  samples
• Alaska subsistence hunting sampling will occur in
  Spring
• Sampling will also occur during hunting seasons
  in areas where migratory birds stage during
  migration or over-winter

9
Sick or Dead Bird Investigation

• Enhanced and systematic investigation of sick or
  dead wild birds offers another opportunity for
  detection
• FWS increasing in-house capability and that of
  state wildlife partners
• Focus primarily on Alaska, Pacific Flyway, and
  the Pacific Islands

10
Sick or Dead Bird Investigation

• Success of the surveillance strategy depends on
• Early detection of sickness and death
• Immediate assessment of the field event
  (descriptive epidemiology)
• Rapid reporting and submission of appropriate
  biological specimens to USGS
• Rapid, accurate, and consistent
  diagnosis and confirmation
• Immediate reporting of diagnostic
  results
• Pre-planned contingency and
  response training

11
Collaboration is Key