Tom Brown is Site Manager at the Paton Center for Hummingbirds in Patagonia.
As much as I would like to be writing this story about all the wonderful migrant birds that are starting to pass through our community, I have a much more serious topic that needs to be discussed. There are a couple of bird diseases that are now in our area.
In the last week we have had a couple of cases of Avian Poxvirus here at the Paton Center for Hummingbirds. This is a highly contagious disease that can affect any species of bird. There are two forms of avian pox, a dry or cutaneous type, and a wet or diphteritic type. At this point we have only seen the dry form here at the Paton Center. This dry form shows up on the bird looking like wart type growths, anywhere on the bird that is featherless. This would be the base of the beak, around the eyes, and the legs and feet.
Mosquitoes act as the primary transmitter of this disease, but it can also be transferred by close contact with infected birds. This transfer can also occur when an infected bird has used a perch, feeder, and water bowls. If you see a bird with this disease, the first thing to do is to remove and sanitize the feeders, best done with a 10% solution of bleach and water. Also, things like suet blocks and orange halves can act like a petri dish, holding the virus until the next bird comes along.
The second disease is most commonly known as Finch Disease, or mycoplasmal conjunctivitis. This disease is restricted to birds in the finch family. The three species that we are likely to see here in The Patagonia are the House, Cassin’s and Purple finch. This disease manifests itself in the form of red, swollen eyes, with a crusty growth all around the eyes and base of the bill. The action to take in this case is similar to the pox, with cleaning and removal of contact points provided, like water bowls and bird feeders.
Neither of these diseases in and of themselves is fatal. In both cases, the bird can recover only to be left with scar tissue in the affected areas. Unfortunately, once the bird contracts either of these, there is a high mortality rate, due to potential loss of vision, fatigue or listlessness, and loss of appetite. The bird also becomes very susceptible to predation when these symptoms are happening.
We all know by now about the need to keep your hummingbird feeders clean to keep these diminutive birds safe from mold, and to frequently change the sugar water which can ferment due to our summer heat. It is also a good practice to keep all your seed feeders cleaned at least once a week. A few minutes each week spent maintaining your bird feeders will help to protect all the wonderful birds that we are blessed to be able to enjoy right here in Patagonia.