logo
episode-header-image
Aug 2023
29m 46s

Bird Flu is back

Bbc World Service
About this episode
Science in Action returns to H5N1, the fast spreading strain of bird flu which has caused devastation in the sky, sea, and land over the last few months, with no end in sight. Roland visits Skomer Island and the coast of Wales where sea bird colonies are threatened and hundreds of guillemots have washed ashore dead, struck down by bird flu. We also hear ... Show More
Up next
Jul 3
Bird flu surges in Cambodia
There's a surge in cases and deaths from H5N1 bird flu in Cambodia - we hear what's the driver and how concerned we should be. Erik Karlsson, Head of Virology at the Pasteur Institute in Phnom Penh and director of the WHO’s H5 Reference Laboratory has been watching the uptick.An ... Show More
35m 50s
Jun 26
Vera C. Rubin Observatory first images
A spectacular new 10-year telescopic survey of the universe gets underway in Chile. Also, a project to create human chromosomes completely synthetically.Almost three decades ago Tony Tyson (now of UC Davis) and colleagues were standing in the control room of the world’s biggest ( ... Show More
37m 48s
Jun 19
Half a universe once lost now found
The universe is thought to consist of 70% Dark Energy, 25% Dark Matter, and just 5% Baryonic matter which is the atoms that make up you and me. At least, that’s what the models suggest. But a well-kept secret between astronomers and cosmologists for all these years has been that ... Show More
41m 41s
Recommended Episodes
Apr 2024
The Evolving Danger of the New Bird Flu
The outbreak of bird flu currently tearing through the nation’s poultry is the worst in U.S. history. Scientists say it is now spreading beyond farms into places and species it has never been before.Emily Anthes, a science reporter for The Times, explains.Guest: Emily Anthes, a s ... Show More
22m 57s
Feb 2024
What happens now bird flu has reached the Antarctic?
The moment scientists had been dreading arrived late last year, when H5N1, or bird flu, was found for the first time in the Antarctic. Last week a king penguin on the island of South Georgia became the first in the region to be suspected to have died from the disease. The Guardia ... Show More
13m 39s
Apr 2024
What to know about the new bird flu outbreak
For the first time, a virulent strain of bird flu has been detected in U.S. dairy cows. Fragments of the virus have also been found in commercial milk. Today, health reporter Lena Sun shares the latest on the outbreak and why the risk to humans remains low.  In recent years, H5N1 ... Show More
27m 31s
Nov 2022
Avian flu
Avian or bird flu is normally seasonal, disappearing as migratory birds leave for winter. However a new strain which seems to spread more easily between wild birds and into poultry has led to the deaths of far more birds than usual. David Steel, Nature Reserve Manager on the Isle ... Show More
29m 9s
Feb 2023
Babbage: Will bird flu cause the next human pandemic?
Over the past 18 months, the largest-ever recorded avian influenza outbreak has decimated bird populations around the world. But recently bird flu has spread to mammals. Last week, Peru reported the deaths of 585 sea lions. If the virus has mutated to enable mammal-to-mammal tran ... Show More
41m 1s
Feb 2023
Babbage: Will bird flu cause the next human pandemic?
Over the past 18 months, the largest-ever recorded avian influenza outbreak has decimated bird populations around the world. But recently bird flu has spread to mammals. Last week, Peru reported the deaths of 585 sea lions. If the virus has mutated to enable mammal-to-mammal tran ... Show More
41m 1s
May 2023
How Concerned Should We Be About Bird Flu?
Cases of avian flu in birds have hit record levels globally—but so far, there’s no evidence of human-to-human transmission. Bloomberg reporters Suzi Ring and Michelle Fay Cortez discuss how scientists are tracking the virus after lessons learned from Covid-19. Then, Dr. Richard W ... Show More
28m 3s
Jun 2022
15/6/22 - Regenerative farming, wild salmon and seabird deaths
The Sustainable Food Trust publishes a report today exploring regenerative farming and what impact this might have on self-sufficient food production in the UK. This year was one of the worst avian flu outbreaks for poultry and the disease is also hitting sea birds. Hundreds of b ... Show More
13m 35s
Jun 2024
Are We Prepared for Bird Flu?
An update on the current bird flu outbreak: it’s still infecting wild birds, mammals and now several farmworkers in the United States. The virus does not appear to be transmitted between humans, but can we prevent further spread? And what are public health officials doing to cont ... Show More
34m 16s