Statewide | Seabirds MASTER’S POSTER PRESENTATION Avian influenza screening at the Alaska SeaLife Center
Presenter: Emmanuelle Furst , emmanuellef@alaskasealife.org, Alaska SeaLife Center Robert Gerlach , bob.gerlach@alaska.gov, Alaska Department of Environmental Health
Natalie Hunter , natalieh@alaskasealife.org, Alaska SeaLife Center Caroline Goertz , carrieg@alaskasealife.org, Alaska SeaLife Center
Avian influenza is a highly contagious disease of great public concern due to its impacts on domestic and wild bird populations, as well as the poultry industry. Detection of highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) results in both national and international trade limitations. Additionally, there is potential for spillover cases into marine and terrestrial mammals, and the zoonotic risk to humans. The presence of this virus in the environment can be difficult to assess as it is typically asymptomatic in the wild birds which act as a reservoir and contribute to virus spread. Reservoir species include waterfowls, gulls and shorebirds, which are routinely handled by the Alaska SeaLife Center (ASLC) as part of its various mission programs. The ALSC has worked in collaboration with public and animal health veterinary sectors to establish a surveillance program to routinely test for avian influenza, allowing for a retrospective longitudinal analysis. Over 2500 samples have been tested spanning from 2000 to 2022, from a combination of annual screenings of our long-term resident animals and research flocks on-site, wildlife rehabilitation admissions and stranding assessments performed by the ASLC, and field research projects. Over this time period, there have been only 28 positive Avian Influenza results, which were further sub typed into low or HPAI strain variants. There have been no positive cases within the past two years, including during the recent high pathology avian influenza outbreak to-date. This surveillance program was put into place not only to ensure the health of our avian and marine mammal populations at ASLC, but also as an effective tool for proactively monitoring cases in our local environment. Gathering unbiased non-selective samplings on all animals encountered through the ASLC programs allow for accurate incidence rates of avian influenza in the Kenai Peninsula, and the ability to adjust preventative zoonotic control measures based on current risk assessments.
Alaska Marine Science Symposium 2023 231
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