March 2, 2006

Bahamas investigates suspicious bird deaths

Officials in the Bahamas launched an investigation Tuesday (Feb 28) into the mysterious deaths of 15 flamingos and six other birds on the southern island of Inagua, fearing it could be the first appearance of H5N1 in the Western Hemisphere, the New York Daily News reported on its website Wednesday.

The dead birds were found with no external injuries, leading experts to suspect bird flu.

"Anything is possible in nature. You have birds that fly around the world," said Leslie Miller, the Bahamas' minister of agriculture and marine resources, according to the article.

Glenn Bannister, president of the Bahamas National Trust, said the deaths were "highly unusual".

"This is a very large number of birds to be found dead at Inagua," he said, noting that the three affected species come into contact with geese and ducks that migrate to the island, which is just north of Haiti, during the winter.

"What's scary is the rapidity with which the bird population is getting afflicted," said Dr. Jeffrey Greene, an infectious disease specialist at NYU Medical Center and author of the new book "The Bird Flu Pandemic" in the article.

"It's going to be a very scary march across the continents," he said, noting the end of the regular flu season does not necessarily end the risk of a pandemic.