The Dutch Wildlife Health Centre has sent out blood sampling kits to game management units/hunters and managers responsible for coordinating found wild animal carcasses via the wildlife management units. In the figure below you can see the locations we received blood samples from. Up until now, 22% of the
Even though reports indicate that highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) is still circulating in wild birds in the Netherlands, this has not led to an increase in wild bird mortality in over 6 months. However, with the autumn migration of birds new variants of the virus might be introduced that can change the
From July to September 2024 increased disease occurrence and correlating mortality were noticed, especially in blackbirds. Reports to the DWHC and Sovon increased steeply (see also Read more
Bird flu is still present among wild birds in the Netherlands. The virus is now endemic in wild bird populations and still causes mortality, although fortunately less than last summer. Some birds have built up partial protection (immunity) against the disease, which means they die less quickly but are also sick
African swine fever (ASF) has been confirmed in two wild boars found dead in Montenegro, near the border with Bosnia and Herzegovina. The wild boars were found on January 12th, 2024. It was likely that ASF would appear in Montenegro as it was confirmed in North Macedonia in 2022 and in Bosnia and Herzegovina,
In late December 2023, it was announced that a polar bear had died from the highly pathogenic avian influenza virus in Alaska. The polar bear was found dead in October near Utqiagvik in the North Slope region. This is the first polar bear reported to have died from bird flu. As the chances of finding a dead polar
Dead white stork. Photo: Ferry Brands
On 16 July 2023, an almost fully fledged white stork (Ciconia ciconia) was found under its nest in Megen, Noord-Brabant. Half an hour before the young was practising wing flapping. The stork was collected by the DWHC in Utrecht to investigate the cause of death.