Bird Flu Suspected in Deaths of Ducks and Wild Birds at N.Y.C. Zoos
The New York Times
Three ducks died of the disease at the Queens Zoo, while three more ducks and nine wild birds that died at the Bronx Zoo were being tested for the virus, according to the parks’ operator.
Three ducks at the Queens Zoo died because of bird flu, and as many as 12 more birds at the Bronx Zoo that died after possible exposure were being tested for the virus, according to the Wildlife Conservation Society, the nonprofit that operates the parks.
The deaths and possible exposures at the Queens Zoo and the Bronx Zoo, one of the largest and most well-known zoos in the United States, come as an outbreak of bird flu has spread across the country, sickening chickens and dairy cattle and driving up the price of eggs.
On Friday, Gov. Kathy Hochul ordered all live bird markets in New York City and a few surrounding counties to close temporarily in an effort to stem the spread of the virus. “Safeguarding public health is all about being proactive,” she said in a statement.
The order, from the state’s Department of Agriculture and Markets, requires live bird markets that have not detected any bird flu cases to sell their inventories and disinfect their operations. Markets with detected cases must follow guidelines for quarantine and depopulation, the order said.
The virus, called H5N1, has infected roughly 156 million commercial, backyard and wild birds across the country since January 2022. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has said that the illness poses minimal risks to the general public’s health, and that it does not yet have the ability to spread readily among people.
The Wildlife Conservation Society, which also operates the Central Park Zoo, the Prospect Park Zoo and the New York Aquarium on Coney Island, said that, as a precaution, the organization had recently moved vulnerable bird species to separate, protected areas inside its parks. It has also limited the exposure of other animals in its care to wild birds and especially to waterfowl, which are known to be carriers of the virus.
