Here are comments to questions received from some of our Audubon members:

First, avian flu has a real possibility to become pandemic. Both our CDC and the international WHO are concerned in this direction and are trying to formulate plans in the case of such an event.

Second, it is was initially most often vectored from ducks and such water birds that are a natural reservoir to poultry because of the now-known greater resistance of such water birds. It now is often passed from the less-resistant poultry (mainly chickens) to humans who handle these commercial products.

Third, the strains of viruses involved (influenza A of subtypes H5 and H7) can genetically merge with human virus types and become transmissible from human to human. Of particular concern at the moment is subtype H5N1 with its recent occurrence in Thailand and Vietnam. To date there does not seem to be a sustained human-to-human transmission; however, several cases point to the probability of such events, namely reports from China and Hong Kong on H9N2, from the Netherlands on H7N7 and now in Thailand on H5N1.

Fourth, nobody has yet demonstrated that song birds are a significant natural pool of avian influenza viruses as far as I am aware, but the WHO report of January 15, 2004 notes that "All birds are thought to be susceptible to infection with avian influenza, though some species are more resistant than others." There is an implied warning in this statement. We already know, as stated under my second point, that it is and was the more resistant water fowl that transmit the disease so readily as they often do not show signs readily detected by their owners and sellers. I can suggest that those who wish to read more details at a lay level can access WHO and CDC info on avian flu via a Google search on the web.

The bottom line for the public at this moment is, with regard to avian flu, there is no proof that they need be concerned about song birds and the use of feeders to help them out of tough winters and the general human-caused loss of such habitat which in the past supplied them with sustenance. The problem this fragile earth faces is too many people increasing at the expense of most of the other flora and fauna. I tried to communicate some sense of this, cast in the public need for more education, especially in science and concerning environment, in my recent (Feb. 24, 2005) "letter to the editor" in The Highlander.