The first case of H5N1 bird flu was found in a wild duck in the U.S., prompting fears that it could spread to domesticated poultry like chickens or humans.
The risk of the virus spreading to domestic poultry or even humans was downplayed by U.S. officials, but it’s still a significant development.
“The finding of the H5N1 virus in a US duck, for the first time, is significant in that it shows how widely distributed bird flus are in nature,” said Dr. Amesh A. Adalja, who works on emerging infectious diseases and pandemic influenza at the Pittsburgh Medical Center and School of Medicine.
