USDA data shows avian flu spread to red foxes, skunk in Minnesota
MINNEAPOLIS -- The Avian influenza spread to some mammals in Minnesota, data from the U.S. Department of Agriculture reveals.
The Avian flu devastated commercial turkey flocks in Minnesota and other areas of the upper midwest, leading to meat and egg shortages.
But the flu also spread to mammals; last year Minnesota recorded eight instances of avian flu found in red foxes. There was also a striped skunk in Itasca County that was infected in November. Wisconsin had 17 infected mammals, including in bobcats and a fisher.
Nationwide, the vast majority of cases were recorded in the northern United States, though there was one bottlenose dolphin that was infected in Florida.
