Hunters warned of sick, dead wild birds

As the spring turkey hunting season approaches in Missouri, hunters are warned to keep an eye out for dead or sick birds in the wild as bird flu spreads closer to the United States.

“We tell all hunters to use common sense practices in the wild,” said Andrew Forbes, wildlife ecologist and bird expert for the Missouri Conservation Department.

Forbes said dead birds found in the wild, or anywhere, should not be picked up unless the person has on rubber gloves.

The Conservation Department’s policy is that when a dead or sick bird is found in the wild, a department employee or a federal natural resources agency worker should be contacted.

“Plans for hunters are essentially unchanged until further notice,” Forbes said of the department’s message for the upcoming hunting season. Spring turkey hunting starts April 24.

Forbes said the Conservation Department always has tested birds found in the wild that have obviously died from disease. Dead water-based birds, the ones most likely to contract bird flu, Forbes said, and eagles are among those frequently tested.

“There have always been other diseases common among birds that we test for, not just avian flu,” Forbes said. “Since an avian flu strain has yet to be found in the United States, no testing out of the ordinary has been done yet in Missouri.”