DR Cedric Lazarus, senior veterinarian in the ministry of agriculture’s veterinary services division, said initial tests carried out on a number of dead birds have come back negative for the West Nile Virus.

However, Lazarus said further tests will be carried out on 40 samples that will shortly be sent to Trinidad and Tobago’s Caribbean Epidemiology Centre.

In January, following an appeal by the authorities, members of the public handed over more than 60 dead birds to the vet services division who were monitoring the virus. But the senior veterinarian noted that of the 60 birds submitted, the division was only able to conduct 40 post-mortems as the remaining birds were in an advanced state of decay.

Noting that the current sample size was far from adequate, Lazarus appealed to members of the public to continue bringing in dead birds and, more importantly, to ensure that they do so within a few hours after their death.

After 36 hours, dead birds are unsuitable for testing.

“We want people to continue bringing in birds because the number of birds we have received already is not representative of the total amount of birds in Jamaica, which number into the millions,” Lazarus stressed.

He told JIS News that after the appeal was made in January, persons were very responsive. However he added that over the last couple of weeks, the number of birds submitted had tapered off substantially.

He warned persons not to touch dead birds with bare hands.

“Protect yourself by wearing gloves, or use a plastic bag to pick up the bird, then invert the bag over the bird, so as not to come in direct contact with the bird,” he said.

A post-mortem, Lazarus added, would be performed the same day the bird is handed over.

The veterinary division has received dead birds from almost every parish, with the bulk of them coming from Kingston and St Andrew. The common dove, which can be found in the backyard of homes, outnumbered all other species submitted. Other species submitted included hummingbirds and warblers.

Dead birds are pivotal indicators of the presence of the West Nile Virus and preceding several outbreaks in the United States, there was a high incidence of dead birds infected with the virus.

The virus is spread to humans by the bite of a mosquito infected from feeding on the blood of an infected bird.

Approximately two weeks must elapse after a mosquito has fed on an infected bird before it is capable of transmitting the virus.