IHRAM.CO.ID, JERUSALEM — An outbreak of bird flu has killed more than 5,000 migrating cranes in Israel. This incident prompted authorities to ban visits to one of the popular nature reserves.
Authorities also warned about the possibility of a shortage of eggs when local farms carry out culling as a precautionary measure. “This is the worst blow to wildlife in Israel’s history,” Israel’s Environment Minister Tamar Zandberg said on Twitter.
Meanwhile, officers clad in hazardous substance shields collected stork corpses from northern Huladi Nature Reserve lakes and remote swamps. Hundreds of thousands of chickens have also been culled.
Israeli media reported that children visiting the reserve may have touched an infected crane and then became an intermediary for the spread of the virus. Authorities are trying to import eggs and anticipate a shortage of eggs due to culling.
Ohad Hatsofe, a specialist at Israel’s Parks and Nature Authority, said another 10,000 birds were believed to be infected with bird flu. A senior scientist at the authority Uri Naveh said the bird flu virus has affected Israel every year. The number of birds that died from the bird flu outbreak this year was much higher than in previous years.
“The number of dead this year is incredible,” Naveh said Al Arabiya, Monday (27/12).
Every year, about 100,000 wild cranes reach Israel since October. Most wild cranes stop in the Hula Valley, which is a key point in their migration route to Africa.
Bird flu or H5N1 has been detected in several chicken populations in northern Israel. Israel’s Ministry of Agriculture has suspended the sale of eggs from the affected farms.
The H5N1 virus rarely spreads between humans. However, in 2003 this virus has killed a number of people in various countries. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), H5N1 has killed more than 450 people, mainly in Indonesia, Egypt and Vietnam, since 2003.
– .
