Avian Influenza Appeal
Will avian influenza devastate UK birds?
A deadly strain of High Pathogenicity Avian Influenza (HPAI) is spreading. The survival of whole colonies has come under threat: since October 2021 more than 61 wild bird species have been infected and, tragically, thousands of birds have been killed.
Since October 2021 an outbreak of High Pathogenicity Avian Influenza has been confirmed in 61 wild bird species
During the 2022 breeding season 85% of Great Skuas were killed in some colonies in the Northern Isles of Scotland
“The autumn migratory period is usually a time for excitement, but we now await the arrival of hundreds of thousands of wintering birds with much trepidation”
During the 2022 breeding season, the disease spread into our seabird populations for the first time. The virus emerged in the Northern Isles of Scotland, where in some colonies it is estimated to have killed at least 85% of Great Skuas and 25% of Gannets.
This loss is globally significant; more than half the world populations of these species occur in Britain and Ireland, as do one-quarter of Europe’s breeding seabirds.
The virus continued to spread through Scotland and to other UK countries, where it has infected an increasing range of seabirds resulting in thousands of breeding birds and their young dying all around our coasts.
You can help our devastated bird populations recover
We urgently need additional resources to support the UK’s response to HPAI. With your help, we can make assessing how many of our breeding seabirds return to their colonies in 2023 a high priority; this will help us to predict how long recovery periods are likely to be and to prioritise data collection to track subsequent changes in population size.
While the BTO/JNCC Ringing Scheme and the BTO/JNCC Seabird Monitoring Programme already provide a framework to achieve this, it is more important than ever to ensure that any knowledge gaps are rapidly filled.
Three bird species of potential concern
Gannet
Morus bassanus
Knot
Calidris canutus
White-tailed Eagle
Haliaeetus albicilla
In order to produce a vulnerability index we used a trait-based approach (Foden et al. 2019) to score species/groups on three aspects of risk which can then be combined:
1. Exposure
This will include: ecological traits, habitat, predator/prey links, quarry species status, likelihood of interacting with poultry.
2. Sensitivity
If exposed, how likely is it that the species will contract, spread or die from infection?
3. Consequence
If an outbreak occurs in the species, what is the potential population-level impact?
Assessing the threat for vulnerable species
Carrying out species vulnerability assessments will inevitably include a large amount of uncertainty due to novel virus strains, variation in how the virus affects species, and the ways individuals interact with each other and the environment.
Nonetheless, these assessments can form the basis for improving rapid decision-making and common approaches between organisations, which are vital during an outbreak response.
BTO is uniquely placed to support the fight
Now is the time for these data to be used to assess the impact of this HPAI outbreak, and to predict future impacts. Ultimately, this will allow the conservation community to manage the long-term effects of the outbreak.
For example, BTO’s work on the Migration Mapping Tool shows how bird movement data from ringing enables policymakers to identify routes by which the disease may enter the country and spread abroad.
“I have worked in bird conservation for almost three decades and I have never experienced a more serious or urgent threat to our wild bird populations. As I hope you can see, we can make a difference.”
Help us make a difference
We are committed to the challenge, and with your support, we can help our devastated bird populations recover.