Avian Influenza Outbreak: Thousands Of Storks In Israel's Hula Sanctuary Dies, Hundreds Of Thousands Of Chickens Slaughtered

The crane in Israel's Agamon Hahula. (Wikmedia Commons/Dr. Avishai Teicher Pikiwiki Israel)

JAKARTA - An outbreak of bird flu has killed more than 5,000 migratory cranes in Israel, prompting authorities to declare the popular nature reserve off limits to visitors, warning of a possible shortage of eggs as poultry are culled as a precaution.

Prime Minister Naftali Bennett met with national security advisers and other experts to discuss efforts to contain the outbreak and prevent it from transmitting to humans. So far no human transmission has been reported, Bennett's office said.

Israeli media said children who had visited the reserve may have touched an infected crane and thus contributed to the spread of the flu.

"This is the worst blow to wildlife in the country's history," Environment Minister Tamar Zandberg tweeted as officers collected stork carcasses from lakes in the Hula Reserve and remote swamps, citing Reuters Dec. 28.

Authorities are seeking ways to remove import quotas and bring in eggs from abroad to prevent egg shortages due to culling.

While citing ABC News, the bird flu outbreak in northern Israel killed at least 5,200 storks, forcing breeders to slaughter hundreds of thousands of birds to withstand a wildlife catastrophe that has been called one of the deadliest in Israel's history.

Uri Naveh, a senior scientist at the Israel Parks and Nature Authority, said the situation was not under control.

"Many birds die in the middle of a body of water so it is difficult to remove them," he said.

Separately, Yaron Michaeli, a spokesman for the Hula Lake park, where the stork population is based, said workers removed the carcasses as quickly as possible, fearing they could infect other wildlife.

Michaeli said it was believed the stork was infected by small birds that came into contact with farms suffering from the outbreak.

However, he said the number of deaths among cranes appeared to have stabilized in recent days.

"This is a good sign. They may start to forget this. We are very hopeful," he said.

Michael added that about 500,000 storks pass through Israel each year on their way to Africa and a small number settle in the region. This year, an estimated 30,000 cranes live in Israel during the winter.