Community Corner
Avian Flu Found in Dead Swans
State officials confirm that four dead swans recently found in Westborough were carrying the disease.
Four of twelve dead swans found in Mill Pond in Westborough at the end of the December have tested positive for avian influenza, reported Assistant Press Secretary Reggie Zimmerman of the Massachusetts Department of Energy and Environmental Affairs.
“This is fairly common for water fowl,” Zimmerman said, stressing that there is no risk to humans from this finding. “We can’t say for sure this was the cause of death for these birds. But we can say they were carrying the virus.”
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Zimmerman told Westborough Patch that most water fowl and wild birds carry a mild form of this virus.
Water Fowl Biologist H.W. Heusmann at the said that there was only enough funding available to test the birds for diseases communicable to humans. He said that it is likely that the cause of death for the twelve swans will never be known.
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“I was not surprised by the finding,” said Paul McNulty, director of He also said that this type of virus is common among water fowl. “The public is not in any danger.”
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