05.12.2014

Regions where migrant birds carrying avian influenza virus were confirmed:
Yasugi (Shimane prefecture)- Bewick's swan droppings
Tattori- Duck droppings
Izumi (Kagoshima prefecture)- White naped crane
Nagara (Chiba prefecture)- Duck droppings
Poultry farms are on high alert over avian influenza. The tension is due to a series of cases in which highly pathogenic avian influenza viruses have been detected in migratory birds. This season’s first highly pathogenic influenza virus in a migrating bird was found in Yasugi, Shimane Prefecture, on Nov. 13. It was followed by additional cases in the town of Nagara in Chiba Prefecture and Tottori. In the first case, the H5N8 subtype was detected in the droppings of migratory Bewick’s swans. On Nov. 29, the virus was found in a debilitated white-naped crane in Izumi, Kagoshima Prefecture, the nation’s largest wintering spot for cranes.
In April this year, avian influenza was confirmed at a poultry house in Kumamoto Prefecture. About 110,000 birds were culled.