The Council of Agriculture (COA) on Friday said that it has tightened monitoring measures in Tainan and Yilan County, after new cases of avian influenza were confirmed in samples collected from migratory and other wild birds in wetlands in the two regions.
The council’s Bureau of Animal and Plant Health Inspection and Quarantine said it was confirmed on Thursday that subtypes of the H7N7 and H5N3 viruses were found in fecal samples from migratory birds in the Sihcao Wetlands (四草溼地) in Tainan and subtypes of the H7N7 and H7N8 viruses were found in fecal samples from wild birds in a wetland in Yilan.
The bureau said that it was the first time a subtype of the H7N8 virus was discovered in Taiwan since 2004, when the nation implemented its avian influenza monitoring system.
The bureau has taken measures to disinfect the two wetlands and nearby poultry farms and increased monitoring of the areas, with samples for avian flu tests to be taken every month for three consecutive months, it said.
The tightened monitoring measures will be lifted when no traces of the viruses are found, it added.
Due to recent outbreaks of avian flu cases in several European and Asian countries, the bureau urged the poultry industry to take precautions against the disease, saying Taiwan is frequented by migratory birds, leaving it at high risk of bird flu.
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