Avian Influenza: Surveillance 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
Jan 05, 2016
Avian Influenza:Surveillance of Wild Birds
U.S. Department of the InteriorU.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
H. Dale Hall, DirectorU.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
The National Strategy
• Preparedness and Communication
• Surveillance and Detection
• Response and Containment
Other USFWS Roles Within The National Strategy
• Protecting public and employee health on Service lands
• Regulating trade in wildlife and
wildlife products
• Smuggling interdiction
Interagency Strategic Plan
• Surveillance and Detection
Live birdsHunter taken birdsInvestigation of mortality events
Surveillance and Detection
Ruddy Turnstone
BreedingMay-Aug
Migration Corridors
NonbreedingAug-Apr
Approx. 20,000 birdsin Alaska
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
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
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
• 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
Sick or Dead Bird Investigation
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
Collaboration is Key