Gannets found to be avian flu survivors

Bass Rock northern gannet study finds irises of birds that beat avian flu turn from blue to black

- Simon Birch

SCIENTISTS HAVE MADE THE DISCOVERY that northern gannets can recover from avian flu and that the irises of the gannets that survive the infection turn from a normal vivid blue to black, an indicator of a previous infection.

A detailed study on the impact of avian flu was carried out on the Bass Rock in Scotland - home to 150,000 gannets, the largest single gannet colony in the world - which was affected by an avian flu outbreak in 2022.