Strain of Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza Kills Thousands of Birds in Quebec

Gannets are shown on their nesting grounds July 25, 2012, on Île Bonaventure in Quebec. The Canadian Press/Jacques Boissinot

The carcasses of thousands of white gannets have been covering the shores of Quebec’s Îles-de-la-Madeleine for the last two weeks, victims of highly pathogenic avian influenza.

“Nobody had to tell me that this was happening; it’s obvious—we’re talking about thousands of dead birds,” Îles-de-la-Madeleine Mayor Jonathan Lapierre said in a recent interview.