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Avian Influenza 'Poultry flu'
« on: Aug 29th, 2005, 3:58pm » |
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Message from BirdLife Internationl:
As you know Avian Flu appears to be spreading across an increasing area of the world and makes the news headlines in more and more countries on a daily basis. Wild birds are frequently implicated so we feel it is important to be clear as a BirdLife Partnership about what is known and understood.
A number of BirdLife Partners, especially in Asia but now increasingly in Europe, have been monitoring the situation. In addition, at the Secretariat our Communication, Asia and Science teams have worked together to gather information and assess it. The BirdLife Position Statement pasted below summarises this situation as of today and provides a guide to the BirdLife Network and wider public on what is known. I would encourage you to check the BirdLife website (www.birdlife.org) regularly for updates since the situation is changing all the time. If you do not have access to the web you can get the information from our Communications staff directly by e mailing Richard Thomas at our Cambridge Office (richard.thomas@birdlife.org).
This disease has already taken the lives of more than 50 poultry workers and, should it mutate into a form readily transmissible in humans, has the potential to kill many more people. Equally, incorrect information about, or irrational actions against, wild birds could result in the unneccessary destruction of large numbers of birds resulting in long term loss of biodiversity and a wider dispersal of birds and potentially the disease. We urge a cautious and evidence-based approach to dealing with this threat.
Dr Michael Rands
Director & Chief Executive
BirdLife International
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