Do Birds Carry Disease From Landfills And Transfer Stations?
Large flocks of birds (and other wildlife) are frequent visitors at landfills all across Canada. Other than negative impacts on bird health, what are some concerns?
Why are there so many birds at Landfills and Transfer Stations?
Landfills remain the most common method for disposing of human trash, and attract a large variety of birds. The large quantities of food scraps found in active areas of trash disposal at landfills can dramatically alter bird ecology, with consequences for their populations and health.
What type of Birds are commonly found at Landfills?
Food resources at active landfills support carnivorous and scavenging species including:
- White Stork
- Bald Eagle
- Ring-billed Gull
- Turkey Vulture
- Crows
- Blackbirds
- Pigeons
- Starlings
What is the Issue with Birds at Landfills?
The food birds find in landfills can compensate for reductions in natural food availability and are thought to contribute to global increases in gull populations in spite of huge decreases in their natural marine-derived prey for the gulls. Landfills may also negatively influence biodiversity, by reducing abundance of sensitive species, directly through exposure to contaminants and pathogens, and indirectly by supporting human-adapted and exotic invasive species that outcompete some native species. Birds are a natural part of the ecosystem and their presence at landfill sites and transfer stations can pose significant risks, especially as vectors for infectious diseases. It is quite common to see huge swarms of birds at landfills and transfer stations because of the abundance of food found in the garbage. This can and does lead to ecological and public health concerns.
Public Health Concerns in Regards to Birds in Landfills
The high density of birds increases the potential for disease transmission from bird to bird, birds to other wildlife and birds to humans.
Vectors and Vector-Borne Diseases
A vector is a living organism that transmits an infectious agent from an infected animal to a human or other animal. Vectors are frequently arthropods, such as mosquitoes, ticks, flies, fleas and lice. Birds and animals can also be vectors. Vectors can transmit infectious diseases either actively or passively:
- Biological vectors, such as mosquitoes and ticks may carry pathogens that can multiply within their bodies and be delivered to new hosts, usually by biting.
- Mechanical vectors, such as flies can pick up infectious agents on the outside of their bodies and transmit them through physical contact.
These diseases that are transmitted by vectors are known as vector-borne diseases. Vector-borne diseases encompass a variety of diseases that are caused by the spread of pathogens by living organisms - vectors. These diseases can be human to human, animals to animals, animals to human, or bloodsucking insects to animals and humans.
Vector borne diseases account for more than 17% of all infectious diseases world wide. Some vectors are able to move considerable distances, for example: travel of humans internationally; animal movement - ie; livestock, migratory birds; or even through the wind.
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