H5N1 HPAI Present in Migratory Waterfowl in the Carolinas
The USDA-APHIS waterfowl surveillance program has confirmed the presence of H5N1 HPAI virus from hunter-killed ducks in Colleton County SC. and Hyde County NC. This latest disclosure together with demonstration of the virus in the Province of Newfoundland and Labrador suggests extensive distribution of AI in free-living birds within the Atlantic Flyway. This has implications for non-confined poultry along the Eastern Seaboard and the need for effective structural and operational biosecurity in commercial farms and complexes.