A mystery involving nearly two dozen dead Canada geese in a Webster park over Christmas weekend has been solved.
The state Department of Environmental Conservation announced on Tuesday that the geese tested positive for avian flu. It is an illness that is highly contagious among birds, but rare in humans.
The geese were found at Charles Sexton Memorial Park near Route 104 in late December. The birds’ bodies were taken to Cornell’s Wildlife Health Lab for testing. The USDA National Veterinary Services Laboratory then confirmed the positive results.
Other suspected avian flu cases in Ellison Park, Geneva, and by Lake Ontario tested negative. In Syracuse, Canada geese that were found dead in a reservoir earlier in December were also recently confirmed to be positive for avian flu.
Since the end of November, there have been outbreaks of the disease detected in several states including Illinois, Wisconsin, Michigan and Ohio, according to the USDA’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service.
The DEC warns that newer strains of avian flu have a high mortality rate among wild and domestic birds. Cases in humans are rare and usually mild. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends people, particularly hunters, minimize exposure by using protective measures.
The state DEC advises anyone who spots a sick or dead bird to contact their regional office, which would be the department’s Region 8 for the Greater Rochester area.
