The Nevada Department of Wildlife, working with U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service and U.S. Department of Agriculture's Wildlife Services personnel, has completed testing on nearly 2,500 bird samples from around Nevada and found no samples testing positive for avian influenza.
State and federal agencies are running these tests as a preemptive measure, although the avian influenza also referred to as the "bird flu" has not yet been detected in wild birds or domestic poultry on the North American continent.
State and federal personnel captured live birds over the summer and sampled ducks, geese and swans taken by hunters from October through January.
The objective set forth in the Nevada plan was to sample migratory bird species most likely to have contact with the Asian continent or mingle with birds coming from there.
The state collected a total of 772 samples while federal officials collected over 1,500 samples in Nevada from live birds, hunter-harvested birds and from the environment in which these birds live.
The state's wildlife and habitat conservation efforts are primarily funded by sportsmen's license and conservation fees and a federal surcharge on hunting and fishing gear.
For more information, visit www.ndow.org.
