PENRO Quezon conducts Wildlife Disease Surveillance

Lucena City, Quezon – PENRO Quezon, under the Monitoring and Enforcement Section (MES) conducted the monitoring and wildlife disease surveillance of the swallow birds thriving along the power lines, identified as Pacific Swallow birds (Hirundo tahitica) and Barn Swallow birds (Hirundo rustica) within Barangays VI and VII in Lucena City.

The said activity is concerning the Joint Department of Health (DOH), Department of Agriculture (DA), and Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) - Administrative Order No. 2020-02: Guidelines to Operationalize the Philippine Inter-Agency Committee on Zoonoses and Avian Influenza Prevention Plan and Malacañang Administrative Order No. 10: Creating the Philippine Inter-Agency Committee on Zoonoses, Defining its Powers and Functions, Responsibilities, Other Related Matters, and Providing funds thereof.

The activity aimed to detect the diversity and potential presence of pathogens in wildlife to better manage zoonotic diseases. The subject avian species is the Swallow Bird, also called as Layang-Layang. The wildlife disease surveillance activities included coordination with the barangays and concerned agencies, collection of fecal samples from the birds, and analysis and results of fecal samples.

A total of 100 vials of fecal samples from the birds were collected along the roadside of the aforesaid barangays. Said samples were brought to the DA-Bureau of Animal Industry, Veterinary Laboratory Division in Diliman, Quezon City, and tested for real-time PCR for Newcastle Disease (ND) and real-time PCR for Influenza Virus Type A. Based on Laboratory Accession No. 23-2147 and Laboratory Report No. 2147 VIR 01, the results of the fecal samples collected were negative for NDV RNA, and Viral RNA are not detected.

• Prev
• Next