The United States Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) has confirmed the presence of highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) in a commercial mixed species flock in Charles Mix County, South Dakota and commercial layer chickens Cecil County, Maryland.

Samples from the flock were tested at the South Dakota State University Animal Disease Research and Diagnostic Laboratory, part of the National Animal Health Laboratory Network, and the University of Delaware’s Allen Laboratory, also a part of the National Animal Health Laboratory Network, and confirmed at the APHIS National Veterinary Services Laboratories (NVSL) in Ames, Iowa.

APHIS is working closely with state animal health officials in South Dakota on a joint incident response. State officials quarantined the affected premises, and birds on the properties will be depopulated to prevent the spread of the disease. Birds from the flock will not enter the food system.