MAINE SUNDAY TELEGRAM • March 6, 2022
It has been a few weeks since the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service announced the presence of “highly pathogenic avian influenza” (aka avian flu) in a non-commercial backyard flock of chickens in Knox County. The avian flu does pose a risk to domestic fowl – such as chickens, turkeys, pheasants, quail, domestic ducks, geese, and guinea fowl – but it is not known to affect songbirds or other “feeder birds.” Unless you are taking care of or raising poultry, there is not a need to take down bird feeders or to stop feeding wild birds. If you are caring for birds, it is recommended that they be taken inside and kept away from wild birds, especially if you have wild turkeys or ducks that visit your feeders. ~ Maine Audubon Staff Naturalist Doug Hitchcox