From: imbibe@mindspring.com   
      
   At Least 36 Bald Eagles Have Died in Bird-Flu Outbreak   
   By Jennifer Calfas, Apr. 18, 2022, WSJ   
      
   Bald eagles are among the millions of birds nationwide being    
   infected with highly pathogenic avian influenza, a viral disease    
   with a high mortality rate for birds like chickens and raptors.    
   Since February, at least 36 bald eagles have died from the    
   bird flu across the U.S., according to the U.S.D.A.   
      
   The escalating bird-flu outbreak is one of the worst in the U.S.    
   in several years, according to the Agriculture Dept, spreading    
   along Florida, up the East Coast and as far west as Colorado    
   and the Dakotas. The highly contagious disease is also hitting    
   egg-laying flocks of chickens, as well as commercially raised    
   turkeys, leading to a surge in egg and turkey breast prices.    
      
   For the bald eagle, the outbreak comes as the population faces    
   another deadly problem: a high incidence of lead poisoning. A    
   study published in February found population growth rates for    
   bald eagles are being suppressed by 3.8% because of lead exposure.    
   Lead, a neurotoxin, has many sublethal effects on eagles that affect    
   their health and ability to defend their territory and produce eggs.    
      
   “It’s concerning,” said Victoria Hall, executive director at the    
   Raptor Center at the University of Minnesota. “You’re pairing a    
   population who’s already dealing with a lead toxicity problem    
   now with highly pathogenic avian influenza.”   
      
   In recent weeks, 12 bald eagles with bird flu have arrived at    
   the Raptor Center. The eagles, who were otherwise at their prime    
   age for breeding, were at the end-stage of the virus and suffered    
   from issues like seizures and being unable to stand, according to    
   Dr. Hall.  Humane euthanasia was the best option for them at    
   that stage, she said.   
      
   “We’re seeing more bald eagles die from high-path avian influenza    
   than we’ve previously documented in any outbreak of this virus,”    
   Dr. Hall said. “And it’s interesting, because many of these birds    
   also have lead poisoning.”    
      
   About 85% to 90% of eagles brought to the center have levels of    
   lead in the blood—and about 25%-30% have lethal levels, Hall said.   
      
   Eagles are hunters, but they also scavenge, including on dead    
   animals and bits of carcass shot and left behind by human hunters.    
   Most hunting ammunition is made of lead, and bullets can fragment    
   when entering an animal’s body, possibly contaminating remains.   
      
   “Right now I don’t think we can say anything except both lead    
   toxicity and HPAI were present in some of the birds,” said Hall.   
      
   The U.S. CDC said last month the bird-flu outbreak poses a low    
   risk to the general public, as it is predominantly an issue among    
   animals. Human infections from bird-flu viruses are rare, according    
   to the CDC.    
      
   Bald eagles were removed from the federal list of endangered species    
   in 2007. Their population in the lower 48 states has grown from    
   72,434 individual birds, including 30,548 breeding pairs, in 2009,    
   to 316,700 individual eagles, including 71,467 breeding pairs,    
   between 2018-2019, according to a report from the Interior Dept last year.   
      
   It's unclear what the broader and long-term impact of this bird-flu    
   outbreak on the bald eagle’s population will be as it is still under    
   way, Dr. Hall said.   
      
   “We're seeing significant mortality,” she said, “and the better    
   data we can collect about what is happening in these populations,    
   the better we can figure out how we can best support them.”   
      
   https://www.wsj.com/articles/at-least-36-bald-eagles-have-died-i   
   -bird-flu-outbreak-11650302381   
      
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