04-15-2008, 12:07 AM
HUMPHREY - An outbreak of avian salmonella has been confirmed in Camden. The outbreak was confirmed by the National Wildlife Health Center through bird specimens submitted by the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission. There are other suspected outbreaks in the Little Rock area, as well. This disease outbreak is not unusual, given the fluctuating weather conditions in Arkansas this late winter and early spring.
According to AGFC nongame migratory bird program leader Karen Rowe the confirmed case in south Arkansas affects wild birds using bird feeders. "If people are seeing sick or even dead birds around their feeders, they need to stop feeding for a week or two. They should also clean their feeders and bird baths using a mixture made of 1 part chlorine bleach and 9 parts water and bury or dispose of dead birds," Rowe said. "Wild birds use feeders to supplement their diet and it is not their sole source of food, so cessation of bird feeding in an area will not cause the birds to starve," she explained.
Songbirds congregate at bird feeders stations in numbers much higher than they would at a natural food source, Rowe said. "It's similar to children at a day care center, bird diseases are spread much quickly and more easily at feeders because of the artificially high numbers of birds concentrated there," she noted.
he disease is caused by a variety of bacterial strains whose health effects can be moderated by a range of factors. Infections can be transmitted in many ways which vary with the strain of salmonella and the feeding and behavioral pattern of the bird. The disease is of little threat to people and a low threat to healthy pets who may consume sick or dead birds
Rowe said people should call the AGFC regional office in their area if they find 25 or more dead birds at a single feeder on the same day. "If people do see over the 25 dead birds around a feeder, they should notify us so we can come out and pick the birds to send to the lab," she said. "If you do see dead birds at your feeder and it's not a large number, simply clean up the area, clean feeders and spray with a diluted beach solution and stop feeding for several weeks," she added.
Swans have departed; public asked to report sightings
PONCA - Those young trumpeter swans that were relocated from Iowa to Arkansas several weeks ago have left their winter or temporary homes.
Karen Rowe, the non-game migratory bird biologist for the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission, asked that anyone seeing one of the big, mostly white long-necked birds to report it by telephone or e-mail to her. Tracking the movements of the young trumpeters is a key part of the experimental project.
There were 13 swans released on Holla Bend National Wildlife Refuge near Dardanelle. Five were released in Boxley Valley in western Newton County, but two of these were killed by predators a few days later.
The Holla Bend swans separated in small groups but stayed in the general area. The three surviving Boxley Valley swans stayed in the area of the mill pond where they were released.
Rowe asked that anyone seeing one or more of the trumpeter swans to report the location and the date to her. All the swans are wearing green neck bands with white lettering. If the lettering can be read with the aid of binoculars or spotting scopes, this information is needed also.
Swans sightings can be reported on the Commission's website at www.agfc.com/wildlife-conservation/birds/trumpeter_survey.aspx. Rowe can be reached toll-free by phone at 877-873-4651 or by e-mail at krowe@agfc.state.ar.us.
The 18 young swans were born in Iowa and were brought to Arkansas by personnel of the Iowa Department of Natural Resources. The objective is to see if the birds will return to Arkansas next winter and hopefully bring other swans with them. The growing numbers of trumpeters in the upper Midwest do not migrate for the most part, resulting in public agency feeding programs when snow and ice cover those areas.
An increasing number of swans are using a small lake east of Heber Springs, and these too have departed, apparently headed by north.
According to AGFC nongame migratory bird program leader Karen Rowe the confirmed case in south Arkansas affects wild birds using bird feeders. "If people are seeing sick or even dead birds around their feeders, they need to stop feeding for a week or two. They should also clean their feeders and bird baths using a mixture made of 1 part chlorine bleach and 9 parts water and bury or dispose of dead birds," Rowe said. "Wild birds use feeders to supplement their diet and it is not their sole source of food, so cessation of bird feeding in an area will not cause the birds to starve," she explained.
Songbirds congregate at bird feeders stations in numbers much higher than they would at a natural food source, Rowe said. "It's similar to children at a day care center, bird diseases are spread much quickly and more easily at feeders because of the artificially high numbers of birds concentrated there," she noted.
he disease is caused by a variety of bacterial strains whose health effects can be moderated by a range of factors. Infections can be transmitted in many ways which vary with the strain of salmonella and the feeding and behavioral pattern of the bird. The disease is of little threat to people and a low threat to healthy pets who may consume sick or dead birds
Rowe said people should call the AGFC regional office in their area if they find 25 or more dead birds at a single feeder on the same day. "If people do see over the 25 dead birds around a feeder, they should notify us so we can come out and pick the birds to send to the lab," she said. "If you do see dead birds at your feeder and it's not a large number, simply clean up the area, clean feeders and spray with a diluted beach solution and stop feeding for several weeks," she added.
Swans have departed; public asked to report sightings
PONCA - Those young trumpeter swans that were relocated from Iowa to Arkansas several weeks ago have left their winter or temporary homes.
Karen Rowe, the non-game migratory bird biologist for the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission, asked that anyone seeing one of the big, mostly white long-necked birds to report it by telephone or e-mail to her. Tracking the movements of the young trumpeters is a key part of the experimental project.
There were 13 swans released on Holla Bend National Wildlife Refuge near Dardanelle. Five were released in Boxley Valley in western Newton County, but two of these were killed by predators a few days later.
The Holla Bend swans separated in small groups but stayed in the general area. The three surviving Boxley Valley swans stayed in the area of the mill pond where they were released.
Rowe asked that anyone seeing one or more of the trumpeter swans to report the location and the date to her. All the swans are wearing green neck bands with white lettering. If the lettering can be read with the aid of binoculars or spotting scopes, this information is needed also.
Swans sightings can be reported on the Commission's website at www.agfc.com/wildlife-conservation/birds/trumpeter_survey.aspx. Rowe can be reached toll-free by phone at 877-873-4651 or by e-mail at krowe@agfc.state.ar.us.
The 18 young swans were born in Iowa and were brought to Arkansas by personnel of the Iowa Department of Natural Resources. The objective is to see if the birds will return to Arkansas next winter and hopefully bring other swans with them. The growing numbers of trumpeters in the upper Midwest do not migrate for the most part, resulting in public agency feeding programs when snow and ice cover those areas.
An increasing number of swans are using a small lake east of Heber Springs, and these too have departed, apparently headed by north.