KANSAS CITY, Mo. — The Kansas City Zoo announced Friday that it will relocate several types of birds to protect their health and well-being amid an outbreak of highly pathogenic avian influenza, or HPAI, in the region.
In an effort to prevent direct contact with wild waterfowl, the birds to be protected — including trumpeter swans, red-crowned cranes, jello-billed storks, African crowned cranes, saddle-billed storks and flamingos — will be moved to behind-the-scenes areas.
The Missouri Department of Conservation confirmed Thursday that HPAI, a highly transmissible respiratory infection that can be deadly to some bird species, had been found in a wild American white pelican in Clay County.
Additionally, the University of Missouri Veterinary Medical Diagnostic Lab confirmed positive cases in birds in Pettis, Randolph and St. Charles counties.
The illness HPAI causes can range from mild infection to a “much more acute, contagious illness that can be fatal to birds," according to the KC Zoo.
Under the current H5N1 subtype, the outbreak can “have devastating effects in poultry” and is primarily transmitted through “direct bird-to-bird contact.”
Although the KC Zoo said the risk to humans is small, it’s taking steps to remove birds to prevent contact with wild birds like ducks and geese, who are natural carriers of viruses.
“Zoo leadership and veterinary health staff will continue to monitor the situation and make additional decisions as the outbreak continues,” the Kansas City Zoo said in a statement. “Though we don’t have a specific timeline for how long this will endure, we hope that all birds will be back in their outdoor habitats this spring.”
HPAI has also been detected in Kansas.
The Kansas Department of Agriculture confirmed its presence in central Kansas on Wednesday, noting that it's the state’s first confirmed case since 2015.
“Confirmed HPAI in wild birds in central Kansas is an indication that Kansas birds are at risk of exposure from the wild migratory bird population,” Kansas Animal Health Commissioner Justin Smith said in a statement. “We’ve encouraged Kansas poultry owners to be aware of this possibility, but now the reality is all poultry owners need to be vigilant in taking steps to protect their flocks from avian influenza. If you haven’t implemented biosecurity practices yet, the time to do it is now.”
To prevent contact with wild birds as well as reduce contact with humans, the Lee Richardson Zoo in Garden City is closing its outdoor walk-through aviary flight to public access until further notice.
“While most of the zoo birds are still in their off-exhibit, temperature-controlled winter home, this step helps protect the birds that are in the flight,” according to a release from Lee Richardson Zoo.
The Centers for Disease Control and prevention believe the current risk of HPAIto the general public’s health in the U.S. is low.
