Following reports of dead snow geese at several beach areas in Sussex County, state agencies tested the birds at the University of Delaware Allen Laboratory and found presumptive positive findings of H5 avian influenza.
State Veterinarian Karen Lopez says the findings confirm there is avian influenza disease in the Atlantic flyway, which is the flyway for bird species along the Atlantic Coast.
“And that there is a large amount of virus in the environment which poses a risk for commercial poultry growers and for backyard poultry enthusiasts," she explained.
The detections mark the Delmarva region’s most recent confirmation of H5 avian influenza in wild birds since May 2022, when the virus was found through wildlife surveillance in black vultures in Harford County, Maryland.
Lopez says the health risk to the general public is “very low to negligible” at this point, but special attention should be paid to keeping pets and children away from wild birds.
“We advise the public not to pick up, not to handle, not to bring inside their homes any dying poultry that they might try to provide care for," she said. "The risk is really direct contact with the birds or any secretions or excretions from them and then poor hygiene — where you might be touching your face and breathing it in."
Despite the ongoing detections of the virus in North America, the H5N1 virus has infected very few people and has not been documented to be transmitted between people.
Lopez says no sick birds would ever enter the food chain, but reminds the public cooking all poultry and eggs to an internal temperature of 165°F is recommended as a general food safety precaution.
The state requests the public report any sick or dead wild birds to the Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control Wildlife Section 1-302-739-9912 from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday. The public can report sightings after hours, weekends and holidays through the DNREC Division of Fish and Wildlife’s sick and injured wildlife reporting form.
Agencies also encourage poultry and livestock owners to practice increased vigilance to protect their animals, including covering waste, removing standing water adjacent to their animals and securing buildings.
"For the backyard flock owners — since their birds do have a lot of exposure to soil and grass where wild birds might be hanging out — we want to really encourage people to put them under cover, even if it's covering them with a tarp, keeping them in a barn, keeping them in the poultry coup where they would have less exposure to any type of wild bird feces, could be protective for them," Lopez said.
Delaware backyard flock owners who notice any signs of HPAI in their flock should email the Delaware Poultry Health Hotline at poultry.health@delaware.gov or call 302-698-4507.
The presumptive positive results now head to the National Reference Laboratory in Ames, Iowa and Lopez says officials should get confirmation on the results within the week.