Bird flu outbreaks are still with us

With 2 more cases announced this week, one in Aberdeenshire and one in Suffolk, the threat to our birds is far from over. Since the first case confirmed in this outbreak on the 26 October 2021, 102 cases of avian influenza have been confirmed in the UK.   This is now the largest ever UK […]

Just starting with incubation?

Our slide presentation on Facebook will guide you through the process. https://www.facebook.com/BritishWaterfowlAssociation/videos/639246863854504

Get set for our AGM next week

Common Pochard landing

Here’s hoping you’ll land on our Zoom meeting on Saturday 26th February at 2pm. Afterwards we will hold our interactive workshop: Incubation … it’s a hot topic! All paid up members will receive a link to join the meeting on Monday or Tuesday. We were disappointed to make the decision to have our AGM online […]

Happy Darwin Day everyone!

Experimenting with your pet ducks? This study seems pretty reasonable — from the great man’s book Origin of Species: “Some species of fresh-water shells [i.e., mollusks] have very wide ranges, and allied species which, on our theory, are descended from a common parent, and must have proceeded from a single source, prevail throughout the world. […]

Spanish Marbled Duck numbers recovering

a brood of Marbled Duck

It is nice to have good news for a change. It seems the numbers of Marbled Ducks breeding in Spain are rising after a decade of serious decline. Read the full report from BirdGuides here.

Stop the Spread

Due to the current avian influenza (bird flu) outbreak, maintaining effective biosecurity has never been more critical. Find out what you can do to keep your birds free of the disease by registering for one of Defra’s ‘stop the spread’ webinars. Leading Defra epidemiologists and veterinary professionals will host these live events. They’ll cover: the […]

Are you secure?

Do you know the signs of #BirdFlu? See APHA’s list of signs here: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/avian-influenza-bird-flu… Contact your vet immediately if you suspect #AvianInfluenza. It is a legal requirement to report it to APHA if you are in England, Wales or Scotland. Unfortunately, as of 29th December 2021, there are now 65 confirmed cases of Avian Influenza […]

Stop the spread — free webinars

Can you spare an hour over the next few days? We feel it is certainly worth listening to advice about protecting our birds. Bird flu is not just a problem for commercial flocks. APHA are running a series of webinars aimed specifically at smallholders/hobby keepers/pet keepers. Specific meetings are available for commercial producers and veterinarians […]

Winter Waterfowl is on its way to members

On the day we went to print, we heard that two members with significant collections have been hit and their birds will have been destroyed by the time you read this. The current outbreak is now the largest ever UK outbreak of avian influenza with 36 confirmed cases (prior to this the largest number of […]

Red Sixty-seven becomes Seventy

Smew drake

 9 species of waterfowl are now on the UK Red List. Bewick’s Swan, Goldeneye and Smew have joined the likes of White-fronted Goose, our 2 native scoters and Scaup as top conservation priorities. 16 waterfowl species have been placed on the new Amber List. The Red-breasted Merganser was moved from Green to Amber on account […]