Join BirdNote tomorrow, November 30th!
Illustrator David Sibley and actor H. Jon Benjamin will face off in the bird illustration battle of the century during BirdNote's Year-end Celebration and Auction!
Can Birds Spread COVID-19?
A new study indicates there’s no need to worry
© Tom Koerner/USFWS Mountain Prairie CC
Birds are ideal hosts for various viruses: they gather in large flocks, often carry viruses without any symptoms, and their migrations connect all parts of the world. But as far as SARS-CoV-2, the kind of coronavirus that causes COVID-19 in humans, it seems there’s no need to worry. In a study of more than 400 animals for risk of infection, all the birds tested had the lowest risk of contracting the virus.
BirdNote®
Can Birds Spread COVID-19?
Written by Richa Malhotra
This is BirdNote.
[Quacking of the Mallard: https://www.xeno-canto.org/603723, 0.00-.04]
Can birds spread COVID-19? Birds are natural carriers of several viruses, including avian influenza — commonly known as “bird flu” — the West Nile virus, and Japanese encephalitis. A variety of coronaviruses have also been detected in more than a hundred species of wild birds across all seven continents.
[Quacking of the Mallard: https://www.xeno-canto.org/603723, 0.00-.04]
And birds are ideal hosts for these viruses: many gather in large flocks, they often carry viruses without any symptoms of disease, and their migrations connect all parts of the world.
But as far as SARS-CoV-2 [SARZ-koh-vee two], the kind of coronavirus that causes COVID-19 in humans, it seems there’s no need to worry. Scientists estimated the risk of SARS-CoV-2 infection in more than 400 animals, rating them from very high to very low risk. Of the 69 bird species included in the study, all were shown to have the lowest risk of contracting the virus. Some of these birds are the American Crow... [https://www.xeno-canto.org/556240, 0.08-.10],
Anna’s Hummingbird, Bald Eagle, Burrowing Owl, Mallard and Wild Turkey
[https://www.xeno-canto.org/586566, 0.00-.04].
For now, it appears that birds are in the clear.
For BirdNote, I’m Mary McCann.
BirdNote gives you the sounds of birds every day -- and you get the sights as well -- when you follow us on Instagram: @BirdNoteRadio
###
Producer: John Kessler
Production Manager: Allison Wilson
Editor: Ashley Ahearn
Producer: Mark Bramhill
Associate Producer: Ellen Blackstone
Bird sounds courtesy of Xeno-Canto. Mallard recorded by Peter Ward and Ken Hall. American Crow recorded by Caio Brito. Wild Turkey recorded by Bruce Lagerquist.
BirdNote’s theme was composed and played by Nancy Rumbel and John Kessler.
© 2021 BirdNote February 2021 Narrator: Mary McCann
ID# virus-01-2021-02-04 virus-01
References:
https://academic.oup.com/femsre/article/44/5/631/5872484
Richa Malhotra
Writer
