Bird flu map shows three US states where avian disease has been found in animals

Bird flu has gripped three states in the US , with experts warning that it's "highly likely" to spread to humans.

The United States Department of Agriculture confirmed that animals in Washington, Kentucky, and Montana have been infected with bird flu , also known as H5N19, sparking fears that this illness could spread to people.

In the last 30 days, a significant number of H5N19 cases have been found in wild birds, particularly in Maine and Massachusetts , according to a map created from USDA data.

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The virus has been detected in various types of animals , including a raccoon in Kentucky, three striped skunks in both Washington and Montana, and even a mountain lion.

The USDA has issued a warning about the severity of this virus, which can cause serious illnesses and sometimes death. This disease has been prevalent in wild birds for many years, with over 82 million cases across 48 states, reports the Hindustan Times.

A separate map indicates that cicadas are set to swarm the US for the first time in 200 years, with trillions of bugs invading the country, reports the Express US .

With the disease now found in animals , including marine life, there are concerns that it might next spread to humans. Dr Chris Walzer of the Wildlife Conservation Society has warned of the potential for the virus to affect humans.

"I think it's quite likely. This avian influenza outbreak has been one of the largest threats to wildlife globally. We just can't wait for it to hit human populations," he told CBS News.

Walzer said that H5N19 is adapting "new traits that could create a problem for us humans."

Therefore, the expert feels that new disease-tracking initiatives should be introduced in order to protect humans.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has advised that employees in the poultry industry should take extra precautions in the face of the spread of avian flu, given they are more susceptible to potentially picking up the illness.

The disease can be fatal to birds and has claimed the lives of 65,000 wild birds and 50,000 animals in Chile, Peru, and Argentina since 2022. The outbreak caused the price of eggs in the United States to spike with the poultry industry in California suffering a huge blow in the process.

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As this CDA map shows, there has also been a high number of cases in the United States since 2022.

While it has been found in land-dwelling mammals in the US, H5N19 has been identified in marine mammals on the Atlantic coast of South America, which has sparked fears that the avian flu could spread next to humans.

Scientists have discovered bird flu in seals and terns in Argentina, worrying experts about the ability of the virus to spread across species.

Tissue samples taken from sea lions that were found deceased at a bird breeding site all came back positive for avian flu, affecting a range of animals including fur seals and terns.

"This confirms that while the virus may have adapted to marine mammals, it still has the ability to infect birds," virologist Agustina Rimondi from Argentina's National Institute of Agricultural Technology cautioned.

"It is a multi-species outbreak," the specialist emphasised.

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