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Govt calls on birdwatchers

2005-10-25 16:12
line

Lake Naivasha - Most mornings James Njenga launches his motorised canoe on Lake Naivasha to show tourists some of the most spectacular birds in East Africa. These days he has a second duty: sentry against bird flu.

In addition to looking for African spoonbills, fish eagles and marsh harriers, Njenga now looks out for three kinds of migratory ducks suspected of carrying avian flu: the northern pintail, the garganey and the northern shoveler.

"They come every year, though I haven't seem them yet this year," said Njenga, a top bird guide for the Great Rift Valley Lodge with a decade of experience on Kenya's lakes. "But they are coming, they always do."

The ducks, which normally arrive in Africa in October and stay through March, are believed to have brought the H5N1 strain of bird flu to Europe. The H5N1 outbreak began in 2003 in Asia, where it has devastated flocks and infected humans, killing some 60 people.

Fears for an outbreak

Experts worry that bird flu outbreaks in Africa, with its strained infrastructure, are likely to be poorly reported and poorly managed. They want to keep a close eye on H5N1, fearing it could mutate into a virus that could be passed easily to and between humans and trigger a deadly global human flu epidemic.

East Africa is of particular concern, United Nations experts have said. In Kenya, authorities say they are making the most of what infrastructure they have - starting with bird watchers like Njenga - but acknowledge the task is daunting.

Dr Muchane Muchai, the head of the ornithology department at the National Museums of Kenya, wis the man the government depends on for scientific monitoring and advice.

Muchai has been working to get the word out to people like Njenga, who observe birds regularly, to serve as a trip wire. Once the birds are seen, as some have been in other parts of Kenya, Muchai will send out a team to collect faecal samples and test them for the virus.

"We need to get out and collect as many samples as possible," he said, adding that their are hundreds of birdwatchers in Kenya, which is known for its birdlife. "We have an internet programme where people log on and tell us where they have found particular species."

Muchai is also warning poultry farmers to keep their stock away from wild birds, and he is planning visits to rural areas to raise awareness.

Most Africans are subsistence farmers who may own a few chickens that roam freely around mud huts, where children play, Muchai said, warning that Africa could be a prime place for the virus to evolve into a human strain.

Uganda, Rwanda, Tanzania and Ethiopia have also started taking steps to keep bird flu from spreading.

Warning of the possible consequences of an outbreak in Africa, the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation appealed last week for the international community to help East Africa to increase its ability to tackle a possible outbreak.

- AP

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