Local Environmental Observer - LEO Network

The Yukon is the latest place to be hit with avian flu cases as an outbreak continues to spread across the country. Officials from the department of environment said in a press release Friday that two waterfowl carcasses in southern Yukon tested positive for the H5N1 virus strand. The Yukon government is asking residents to report sightings of sick or dead birds to their TIPP line at 1-800-661-0525.

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Two wild birds test positive for avian flu in a first for the Yukon - Local Environmental Observer (LEO) Network Whitehorse, Yukon, Canada / The Yukon is the latest place to be hit with avian flu cases as an outbreak continues to spread across the country. Officials from the department of environment said in a press release Friday that two waterfowl carcasses in southern Yukon tested positive for the H5N1 viru...

"I was too late to get a picture, but I saw 5-6 swans floating in a pond in this area. They all had their wings partly spread out in the water, with the heads stretched out in front of them. We were over 500’ up, so I couldn’t tell, but they were all floating in this weird way - wings less than half ways stretched out and the head stretched out pointed forward."

There was no on site follow up possible on this report, so it is not known whether these birds were alive or dead, sick or healthy. However, given recent reports of avian influenza in other parts of Alaska, all observations about unusual bird behavior are worth noting. This event was reported to the USFWS Sick Bird Hotline, 1-866-527-3358. Please note that there are no confirmed cases of highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) at this time in the Bering Strait Region. HPAI will be a topic of discussion at the upcoming UAF Strait Science webinar on May 26th at 6:30 pm as well as on the Alaska LEO Network webinar on June 14th.

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https://www.leonetwork.org/en/posts/show/4E428719-CB3A-4E2F-A16A-EE3D95D4B7FE?cb=9fcbd456-5706-4265-bdb4-0b645b90fe1a

Biologists say the bison population took a big hit this winter. More than a dozen were hit and killed by vehicles because the animals were using roads in lieu of their usual trails, which were covered by deep snow and ice. Check out the full and related stories on the LEO Network!

https://leonetwork.org/en/posts/show/0B1FF65C-2C6E-49C6-8753-B686179C00D2