HPAI Resources
Avian influenza, often called bird flu, has become a growing concern across the U.S. The highly pathogenic strain of avian influenza (HPAI) has become widespread among wild birds, with sporadic outbreaks detected among poultry flocks, dairy cattle, and other mammals. The risk to humans, especially those who do not work in close contact with birds or cattle, is extremely low.
What is HPAI?
Highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI, bird flu) is a disease found in birds caused by avian influenza Type A viruses. HPAI is most commonly seen in wild aquatic birds and can infect domestic poultry.
Why is avian influenza a public health concern?
Beyond the agricultural impacts, practitioners in public health are monitoring the emerging disease, as it is a zoonotic disease, meaning it can potentially spread to humans. Many practitioners have concerns about the recent spillover from poultry to dairy cows (pasteurization of milk inactivates the virus) because when a zoonotic disease is found in a new species, it can lead to new opportunities for human exposure.
Although the risk to humans is low, transmission between animals and possibly humans can occur through direct contact with saliva, mucous, or feces from infected animals or through an intermediate host. Individuals working around or who frequently come into contact with infected animals should use personal protective equipment to avoid infection.
Human infection is rare but can occur when a high enough level of the virus gets into a person’s eyes, nose, or mouth or is inhaled. The disease affects the respiratory tract in humans and can cause severe illness. The newest mutation of the virus has led to conjunctivitis in humans who work closely with animals.
Human-to-human transmission is extremely rare.
Useful resources for animal cases
Agencies across NYS are working together to identify, track, contain, and monitor the situation and ensure the disease is contained. The Cornell Wildlife Health lab provides updates on detected cases and numerous resources for people who encounter wild birds and domestic birds.
The NYS Department of Environment and Conservation (DEC) has set up a reporting tool. If you have come across an animal that may be infected, you can inform the DEC here.
Additional resources
CDC
The CDC is monitoring the situation and has a variety of resources and information available on HPAI. Again, the risk to human health is low. However, for individuals working in close contact with potentially infected animals (including hunters, animal rehabilitation, wildlife rescue, or if you find a dead bird in your yard), it is helpful to know how to properly protect yourself.
USDA
The USDA-APHIS website is now being updated with positives in both wild birds and domestic poultry. You can see these updates at the links below, though know that there is typically a lag of a couple of days for things to be posted. For both, you can search for NYS cases using the tools on the website or download the CSV (Excel) and sort the data that way.
Positive cases in commercial and backyard poultry
USDA-APHIS also updates in mammals and livestock detections; you can find those links here.
NYS Ag and Markets
NYS Ag and Markets also update their website to share positive avian cases in NYS.
This page shows any restrictions for import/export, shows, sales, etc.
Cornell Cooperative Extension
CCE educators and specialists can reach out to Amy Barkley, livestock and beginning farm specialist with the SWNY Dairy, Livestock, and Field Crops Program at (amb544@cornell.edu) or (716) 640-0844 for more information and/or to suggest additions to the FAQ.
Visit the CALS website for information on HPAI in dairy cattle.
Flock owners and community members can contact their local Cornell Cooperative Extension office for assistance.
Media inquiries can be directed to Cornell Cooperative Extension Communications at cce-communications@cornell.edu.
Cornell Cooperative Extension’s NY Extension Disaster Education Network has additional resources to help answer individual questions about HPAI.
Beware of misinformation.
There is a lot of information coming out as the virus monitoring continues. Confirmation of infection takes time through proper lab testing. This opens the door for misinformation. Ensure you check the sources of information and learn how to identify trustworthy sources.
Rand has compiled a list of tools to help identify misinformation or disinformation.