Avian flu has spread in many regions of Quebec, it strikes several species and has already killed thousands of birds. The ministries involved in monitoring the spread of the virus do not, however, count the deaths that accumulate. And it is now suspected that the virus is also killing St. Lawrence seals.
While the high season for tourism is in full swing in the Magdalen Islands, bird carcasses, particularly those of northern gannets, continue to be present on the beaches of the archipelago. Between June 15 and July 5, no fewer than 3,843 birds were found dead, bringing the toll to more than 5,000 carcasses recorded in the region since the start of the epidemic among wild birds in Quebec. The virus was detected for the first time in Canada last fall, in Newfoundland, in sea gulls, highly migratory.
According to data from the municipality of Îles-de-la-Madeleine, certain days clearly illustrate the extent of the phenomenon. Thus, on June 30, a total of 825 carcasses were picked up over a distance of six kilometers of beach in the Dune du Sud sector. And over a period of four days, 1540 dead birds were recovered in this area of the Islands.
The imposing colony of northern gannets on Bonaventure Island, which numbers more than 100,000 individuals, is also affected by avian flu. The director of Parc national de l’Île-Bonaventure-et-du-Rocher-Percé, Rémi Plourde, estimates that around 450 northern gannets have so far been found dead on the island located off Percé and visited by nearly 60,000 tourists each summer. He stresses, however, that this count is not exhaustive, since crazy people can fall into the water or die elsewhere. Several were also found dead, particularly in the Gaspé sector.
Mr. Plourde adds that the spread of the virus could have an impact on the reproductive success of the colony, since chicks can become orphans. However, he wants to be reassuring. “It’s not very scientific, but I have the impression that there is a form of stability, and not a galloping growth of gannets that we would find dead. That’s what I’m seeing right now,” he told the To have to. “I don’t have the impression that we are in something exponential. »
According to other information obtained by The duty, deaths among gannets on Bonaventure Island could be much more numerous than Mr. Plourde believes. And in this colony where the birds live very close to each other, so without any social distancing, the H5N1 virus could have serious consequences.
Veterinarian Stéphane Lair, director of the Quebec Center for Wild Animal Health, argues that it is too early to measure the extent of the losses for this colony, but also for the other bird populations affected by the virus. However, he believes that these should normally be able to recover, even if the deaths are likely to be very numerous.
No count
One thing is certain, tourists who visit Île Bonaventure, the Îles-de-la-Madeleine, the Bas-Saint-Laurent, the Gaspésie or the Côte-Nord can expect to see birds in bad shape, agony or death over the next few weeks. According to the Ministère des Forêts, de la Faune et des Parcs (MFFP), “we must now consider that the highly pathogenic avian influenza virus H5N1 has spread to all regions of Quebec”.
The pan-Canadian website, which monitors the development of avian influenza, also shows that the virus is indeed present on a large scale in Quebec. In particular, cases have been identified in the Montreal region, in Estrie, in Mauricie, in the Quebec region and in Lac-Saint-Jean.
Several species of birds are affected. According to the MFFP, “the virus causes more significant mortality in seabirds in the Estuary and Gulf of St. Lawrence,” particularly gannets, common eiders, sea gulls and herring gulls. The other infected species are aquatic birds (snow geese, Canada geese, ducks), birds of prey (including the bald eagle) and corvids.
The MFFP and the Ministry of the Environment and the Fight against Climate Change (MELCC) both indicated that they were not counting the carcasses of birds in the context of this avian flu epidemic. “The recovery of dead birds is a municipal responsibility,” said the MELCC.
In recent weeks, seals have also been found dead on the US east coast, killed by the bird flu virus. According to the Dr Lair, it is plausible to believe that the seals of the St. Lawrence, like the harbor seal, can also be affected by the virus. An increase in deaths has also been observed this year in the estuary, and analyzes are in progress.