It's time to take down your bird feeders because of bird flu [View all]

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Blue jays are among the bird species infected with avian flu. As of the end of March, other species, nationwide, included American crow, bald eagle, red-tailed hawk, wild geese, many species of duck, black vulture, hooded merganser

Time to take down your bird feeders.

The Raptor Center at the University of Minnesota is now recommending that people pause things that bring birds together in groups, like bird feeders.

"This would be for the next couple of months, until avian flu in wildlife decreases," Dr. Victoria Hall, executive director of the Raptor Center, said in an e-mail announcement.

"It's just not worth the risk when there are so many unknowns about the role songbirds might play during this unprecedented outbreak," she said.

The center had earlier thought that precaution was not necessary. But the center has seen unprecedented outbreaks involving raptors as the bird flu situation continues to evolve.

Now would be a good time to clean your bird feeders so they're ready when it's OK to rehang them.

https://www.startribune.com/time-to-take-down-your-bird-feeders-because-of-bird-flu-concerns/600164910/