Thread by @12broadbentm

Very pleased to see a long segment at the start of today's @BBCSpringwatch episode about Bird Flu. But there's a LOT more to be done. A thread...

All photos in thread @macstronach

1/15

Bird Flu will be referred to as AI (avian influenza) from now on in this thread.

First, the facts. When a bird is infected with AI, research suggests that it will likely die within 28 hours. However this isn't the end of the matter.

2/15

AI can persist for up to around a month after a bird has died, creating a problem for any species feeding on the bird, or just generally living in the area the infected bird has been defecating. It spreads like wildfire, basically

3/15

No less than 1/3 of the Svalbard population of barnacle geese wintering in the Solway Firth have recently died of AI. But that's not all. I witnessed first hand hundreds of dead and dying pink-footed geese around the Highlands on their way back north.

4/15

It seems that the areas they roosted and defecated became hotspots for AI, with many species such as Eider, Long-tailed Duck and even puffin affected in the Loch Fleet area - see numbers posted by @macstronach from a brief survey on the 11th May

5/15

These dead birds have then been left on the beach, often reported to Defra and ignored, and maybe even more often not reported due to lack of awareness. Therefore, scavengers have started to feed on them, and become infected. See photos of Great Skua and Buzzard

6/15

The wide variety of species already reported to have AI despite testing being not as thorough as many would like begs the question how many more species have AI in their population? Its terrifying to me!

7/15

The most scary thing I can think of, which has kept me awake at night is that 60% of the world's great skuas breed here, and some colonies are reporting 65% declines in the species. I'll let you do the maths, but this does not paint a pretty picture for the future...

8/15

We're potentially looking at catastrophic population damage to one of our most enigmatic breeding species.
Gannets are following a similar trend, and I've seen photos from Norfolk of tens of dead Arctic terns. 80% of the world's pink-footed geese winter in EA too!

9/15

On top of this, there's studies to show the current variant of AI jumping to foxes, and possibly other mammals too. Is it a stretch to imagine humans starting to become infected? I don't think so really

10/15

So what can you do? Well for me, the best thing you can do is to be aware of AI and what do do if you see a dead or dying bird, but also raise awareness as much as you can. Tell friends and family. It's depressing, but so important

11/15

If you see a dead bird, first of all, don't handle it. It's potentially very risky. Instead, please immediately report it to Defra on 03459335577.

12/15

We also need to lobby Defra and other regulators to carry out regular testing, and to dispose of carcasses. Its so important to monitor AI and understand the full scale of the issues and to remove carcasses ASAP to prevent spread as far as possible

13/15

The breeding season for many water/seabirds is very long, and this is only going to get worse. So the time to raise awareness and be ready to act is now. Volunteers may be needed to help remove and bury carcasses in the future

14/15

But birds have to be taken from our beaches quicker than this. If a predator has started to scavenge a dead bird, it's been left there for too long! Please please please report dead and dying birds to Defra on 03459335577

15/15

I've been told hashtags help

So

#birdflu