Authorities in South Africa’s Western Cape have confirmed new bird flu outbreaks while urging the public to stay alert but not alarmed. The highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) has been spreading rapidly throughout the United States’ poultry and dairy cattle, and while that outbreak seems to have abated for now, South Africa is experiencing an increase in the virus’s prevalence.

HPAI has been responsible for mortalities in Great White Pelicans near Malmesbury and Hartlaub’s Gulls in the Cape Town area, accoridng to a report by the Western Cape. These are the first wild bird cases reported in the Western Cape since April 2024 and the first mass mortalities since 2022.

Avian influenza is a viral disease that primarily affects birds. Infected wild birds may appear unusually tame, lose their fear of humans, or exhibit neurological signs such as twitching or seizures. The virus is present in the droppings and bodily fluids of infected birds and spreads via direct contact between birds or through contaminated materials. –Western Cape

People in the U.S. are beginning to wonder how the bird flu just vanished. Much like the flu during the COVID-19 scamdemic, the HPAI all of a sudden fell out of headline news after it was being pushed for over a year, and was often called the “next pandemic.”

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So far, there is still no evidence to suggest that human-to-human transmission of the H5N1 bird flu. That doesn’t mean humans shouldn’t “fear” the infection, but the risk is still low accoridng to most media reports and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

The Western Cape Government urges the participation of the public and the agricultural sector in preventing the spread of this disease in poultry. Avian influenza is a controlled disease in terms of the Animal Diseases Act, 35 of 1984, so it is important to report suspected outbreaks in poultry to the local State Veterinarian immediately. –Western Cape

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