Bird Flu Death Toll Rises Amidst Wild Bird Migration

The 2022 bird flu death toll is striking once again after declining over the summer. So far nationwide, 53 million fowl have been tallied as victims of avian influenza, surpassing the 2014-2015 outbreak. Wild bird migration is a direct cause of the spreading, along with insufficient biosecurity protocols, so as the fall geese migration peaks this month in Iowa, the disease is expected to infect more domestic flocks.

In the Spring of 2022, 19 Iowa flocks were impacted between March and May, causing the state’s individual disease total to rise to about 13.4 million birds. So far, five flocks have been affected this fall with an impact of more than 2.1 million birds. Most of them were from two Wright County facilities with egg-laying hens that had more than 1 million apiece.

Read more on bird flu, symptoms and prevention measures here.