fwiw, another view ...
Tests identify H5N9 avian flu at California duck farm
www.cidrap.umn.edu
... Highly pathogenic H5N9 avian flu has been identified for the first time in US poultry, on a duck meat farm in California that experienced an outbreak in November 2024, according to a notification today from the World Organization for Animal Health (WOAH).
Both H5N9 and H5N1 were detected at the duck farm in Merced County, according to tests conducted by the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) National Veterinary Services Laboratory. The event began on November 23, with clinical signs that included increased deaths in the ducks.
State officials quarantined the affected farm, and a culling operation of the facility's nearly 119,000 birds was completed on December 2. Scientists with the USDA's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS), state partners, and wildlife officials are conducting a comprehensive epidemiologic investigation. ...