Bird feeders during Avian flu outbreaks

 from Cornell Lab  

Originally published April 2022. Updated through February 2025 to reflect further developments in the outbreak.

Many people are concerned about the outbreak of avian influenza, or bird flu, that began in 2022 and has affected domestic poultry, waterfowl, raptors, shorebirds, other species of birds, and some mammals in many parts of the world. Because the current strain (H5N1) causes heavy losses to poultry, it is referred to as highly pathogenic avian influenza, or HPAI.

Transmission of avian influenza from birds to humans is rare, according to Centers for Disease Control’s summary of current avian influenza testing and infection statistics.

Reports of Avian Flu in Birds

This H5N1 strain of avian influenza virus affects a wide variety of wild birds, including hawks, eagles, falcons, owls, crows, vultures, shorebirds, game birds, seabirds, and especially waterfowl such as Canada Geese and Mallards (see list of species with HPAI detections, below). The virus is shed in the saliva, mucus, and feces of 

infected birds and is transmitted to other birds via ingestion or inhalation.

Because of the duration of this outbreak, its recent spread to mammal species, and widespread mortalities in some types of wild birds, there has been concern about whether it’s safe for people to feed wild birds. In January 2025, March 2023, and April 2022, we checked in with Dr. Sarah Bevins and Dr. Julianna Lenoch, who lead the USDA APHIS National Wildlife Disease Program to compile some key points regarding HPAI in songbirds and other feeder visitors.

Low Risk of Avian Flu to Songbirds

There has been widespread transmission of avian flu to wild bird species including waterfowl and raptors. However, there have been relatively few documented cases of HPAI in songbirds and other typical feeder visitors to date, although this may change with increased testing or changes to the virus. That means there is currently a low risk of an outbreak among wild songbirds, and no official recommendation to take down feeders unless you also keep domestic poultry, according to the National Wildlife Disease Program. We do always recommend that you clean bird feeders and birdbaths regularly as a way to keep many kinds of diseases at bay. 

We also always recommend that you follow any recommendations put out by your state government, even in cases where that advice conflicts with ours. The CDC’s page on avian influenza in birds compiles additional helpful information and resources, in English and Spanish. 

How do we know songbirds are at low risk?

• USDA APHIS has a strong, multiyear surveillance program that routinely samples wild birds, including flocks of songbirds (and other species such as Rock Pigeons and Mourning Doves that are often around humans), for the presence of avian influenza. Their results are displayed on a Wild Bird Avian Influenza Surveillance dashboard. Detections of HPAI in wild birds from all sources are reported by USDA APHIS: Detections of Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza in Wild Birds.
• Highly pathogenic avian influenza does not affect all types of birds equally. For example, waterfowl often carry and transmit bird flu, and with the current strain they sometimes get sick or die. Raptors are much more sensitive to the disease. Domestic poultry are extremely susceptible to HPAI and spread the disease easily, leading to up to 100% mortality of affected flocks.
• Songbirds are much less likely than waterfowl to contract variants of avian influenza and less likely to shed large amounts of virus, meaning they do not transmit the disease easily. (For detailed reviews, see Ringenberg et al. 2024 in the journal Transboundary and Emerging Diseases, and Shriner and Root 2020 in the journal Viruses.)
• According to a separate study in Journal of Wildlife Diseases, “…although passerines and terrestrial wild birds may have a limited role in the epidemiology of IAV [avian influenza A viruses] when associated with infected domestic poultry or other aberrant hosts, there is no evidence supporting their involvement as natural reservoirs for IAV.” (Slusher et al. 2014)
• For these reasons, it is unlikely that bird feeders will contribute to an outbreak among songbirds.

If songbirds are at low risk, why are people who keep poultry advised to take down their bird feeders?

• The main concern with songbirds is the chance that a rare individual might transmit an infection to poultry. This is a concern because poultry are so much more vulnerable than songbirds to HPAI.
• The key intervention is to keep songbirds away from poultry; it’s less important to keep songbirds away from each other.
• If you have a backyard poultry flock, these are the most important steps to take:
  (click for full info on these biosecurity measures from USDA APHIS)
  • make their food inaccessible to wild birds
  • make their water inaccessible to wild birds
  • keep poultry indoors or otherwise physically separated from wild birds, if possible
  • change your clothes and wash hands before tending to poultry (or pet birds)
• As a secondary measure, USDA APHIS recommends for poultry owners to take down wild bird feeders or keep them well away from their captive flock
• If you keep chickens or ducks, please see also latest information from the USDA Animal Plant and Health Inspection Service.  

If you keep nest boxes:

Avian influenza is only rarely transmitted to humans, according to the USDA. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention considers the general public health risk from avian flu to be low. Nevertheless, our NestWatch project always advises good hygiene and highly recommends that people wear disposable gloves and/or wash their hands thoroughly after checking nest boxes. Most birds that use nest boxes are songbirds, which are at low risk for contracting or transmitting avian influenza. If you monitor waterfowl or raptor nests (e.g., Wood Duck, Common Merganser, Canada Goose, American Kestrel, Barred Owl), we suggest you wear gloves, change or wash gloves and disinfect equipment between nest boxes, wear a mask when cleaning out nest boxes, and change clothes and footwear before visiting any domestic poultry.

If you are a wildlife rehabilitator:

Wildlife rehabilitators should take precautions when accepting sick birds so that they don’t inadvertently introduce HPAI to the rest of their patients. Here’s further guidance for rehabbers, from USDA APHIS. Rehabbers in New York State are also encouraged to contact the Janet L. Swanson Wildlife Hospital at Cornell University for more information.

What to do if you find a sick or dead bird:

Avoid handling sick or dead birds. Instead, call your state wildlife health agency; they can determine cause of death and send the bird to the appropriate lab for testing. Additionally, keep pets (including pet birds) away from sick or dead wild birds.

• Avoid contact with birds that appear sick or have died
• Avoid contact with surfaces that have bird feces
• If you must touch sick or dead birds: 
  • Wear gloves and a face mask  
  • Place dead birds in a double-bagged garbage bag 
  • Throw away your gloves and facemask after use  
  • Wash your hands well with soap and warm water 

Bird flu is generally not a risk to food safety. Poultry, meat, and eggs that are safely handled and cooked to an internal temperature of 165°F are safe to eat. Pasteurized milk is also safe; however the avian flu virus has been found in raw milk and this should not be consumed by people or fed to cats.

If you feel sick after having contact with sick or dead birds, contact your health care provider. 

Has Avian Flu Been Reported in Mammals?

There have also been reports of mammals such as red foxes, skunks, bobcats, fishers, and bears infected with avian influenza, likely from eating infected birds. Outside the U.S. avian flu has infected farmed mink and has caused losses at marine mammal colonies in South America. In March 2024 the USDA reported that avian flu has been found in cattle in several U.S. states. The CDC has additional information on avian flu in cattle and associated risks to humans.

Additional Resources:

• Latest outbreak statistics from USDA APHIS
• USDA APHIS page about avian influenza in wild birds
• FAQ about avian influenza and wild birds (USDA APHIS)
• Simple biosecurity measures for preventing avian influenza on farms (USDA APHIS)
• Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (Bird Flu) Resource Center (Cornell College of Veterinary Medicine)
• Avian influenza in New York State (Cornell Wildlife Health Lab)
• FAQ about Avian Flu in New York State (Cornell College of Agriculture and Life Sciences)

Wild bird species with HPAI detections in 2022–2025

Updated January 31, 2025. Total number of detections in wild birds: 10,913 (plus 1,053 captive birds). Detections in passerines: 360. See Detections of Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza in Wild Birds for latest detections.

Passerines (25 species)

American Crow (85 individuals, plus 13 unidentified crow spp.)
American Robin (2)
Barn Swallow (1)
Black-billed Magpie (16)
Boat-tailed Grackle (1)
Brewer’s Blackbird (7)
Common Grackle (5, plus 2 unidentified grackle spp.)
Common Raven (47)
Dark-eyed Junco (1)
European Starling (27)
Fish Crow (8)
Great-tailed Grackle (6)
House Finch (2)
House Sparrow (115)
Lark Bunting (1)
Lark Sparrow (1)
Lincoln’s Sparrow (1)
Red-winged Blackbird (2, plus 2 unidentified blackbird spp.)
Savannah Sparrow (3)
Say’s Phoebe (2)
Song Sparrow (6)
Summer Tanager (1)
Tree Swallow (1)
Western Kingbird (1)
White-crowned Sparrow (1)

Other Feeder-Associated Species (9 Species)

California Quail (7)
Cooper’s Hawk (21)
Eurasian Collared-Dove (8)
Mourning Dove (6)
Rock Pigeon (83, plus 1 unidentified pigeon spp.)
Ruffed Grouse (1)
Sharp-shinned Hawk (6)
White-winged Dove (1)
Wild Turkey (21)

Other species (137 species)

American Barn Owl
American Black Duck
American Coot
American Herring Gull
American Kestrel
American White Pelican
American Wigeon
Arctic Tern
Bald Eagle
Barred Owl
Black Scoter
Black Skimmer
Black Turnstone
Black Vulture
Black-bellied Plover
Black-bellied Whistling-Duck
Black-crowned Night Heron
Black-legged Kittiwake
Black-necked Stilt
Blue-winged Teal
Bonaparte’s Gull
Brandt’s Cormorant
Brant
Broad-winged Hawk
Brown Pelican
Bufflehead
Cackling Goose
California Condor
California Gull
Canada Goose
Canvasback
Caspian Tern
Cattle Egret
Cinnamon Teal
Common Eider
Common Goldeneye
Common Loon
Common Merganser
Common Murre
Common Tern
Crested Caracara
Double-crested Cormorant
Dunlin
Eared Grebe
Eastern Screech-Owl
Ferruginous Hawk
Forster’s Tern
Fulvous Whistling-Duck
Gadwall
Glaucous Gull
Glaucous-winged Gull
Glossy Ibis
Golden Eagle
Great Black-backed Gull
Great Blue Heron
Great Egret
Great Horned Owl
Greater Sage-Grouse
Greater Scaup
Greater White-fronted Goose
Green Heron
Green-winged Teal
Harris’s Hawk
Hooded Merganser
Horned Grebe
Iceland Gull (Thayer’s)
Laughing Gull
Lesser Scaup
Long-eared Owl
Long-tailed Duck
Mallard
Merlin
Mottled Duck
Muscovy Duck
Mute Swan
Neotropic Cormorant
Northern Fulmar
Northern Gannet
Northern Harrier
Northern Pintail
Northern Shoveler
Osprey
Pacific Loon
Parasitic Jaeger
Peregrine Falcon
Pied-billed Grebe
Prairie Falcon
Razorbill
Red-necked Grebe
Red-necked Phalarope
Red-shouldered Hawk
Red-tailed Hawk
Redhead
Ring-billed Gull
Ring-necked Duck
Ring-necked Pheasant
Roseate Spoonbill
Ross’s Goose
Rough-legged Hawk
Royal Tern
Ruddy Duck
Ruddy Turnstone
Sabine’s Gull
Sanderling
Sandhill Crane
Sandwich Tern
Short-billed Gull
Short-eared Owl
Short-tailed Shearwater
Snow Goose
Snowy Egret
Snowy Owl
Snowy Plover
Swainson’s Hawk
Trumpeter Swan
Tundra Swan
Turkey Vulture
Western Grebe
Western Gull
Western Sandpiper
Western Screech-Owl
White-faced Ibis
White-winged Scoter
Willet
Wood Duck
Wood Stork