Fears of bird flu in Bahamas
March 02, 2006 Edition 1
Nassau: Experts yesterday probed the unusual deaths of 14 birds in the southern Bahamas amid fears that the deadly H5N1 bird flu virus strain had reached the Americas.
Ten flamingos, three roseate spoonbills and a cormorant were found dead in a wildlife reserve on the Bahamas island of Great Inagua, which has a population of about 50 000 flamingos.
"It is definitely an unusually high number, normally you don't find wild birds dropping out and dying," said Eric Carey, director of Parks and Science for the Bahamas National Trust, which runs the Inagua National Park. He said, however, "any number of things", including poisoning or weather, could have caused the deaths. - Sapa-AFP
