VOA新闻杂志2023 禽流感疫情蔓延（在线收听）

Avian flu has reached new areas of the world and has become a year-round problem, animal and disease experts warn.

动物和疾病专家警告称，禽流感已经蔓延到世界上新的地区，并已成为一个全年的问题。

More than 20 experts and farmers on four continents spoke to the Reuters news agency about the problem.

来自四大洲的20多名专家和农民就这个问题接受了路透社的采访。

They suggested that record outbreaks will not stop soon on poultry farms.

他们表示，创纪录疫情爆发不会很快在家禽养殖场停止。

They also warned that farmers must view the disease as a serious risk all year, instead of doing prevention efforts during spring movement seasons for wild birds.

他们还警告称，农民必须全年都将这种疾病视为严重风险，而不是在野生鸟类春季迁徙时才采取预防措施。

The outbreaks of the virus have continued through the summer heat and winter cold in North and South America, Europe, Asia and Africa.

该病毒在北美、南美、欧洲、亚洲和非洲爆发，已经持续了整个炎热的夏季和寒冷的冬季。

Egg prices set records after the disease killed tens of millions of chickens last year.

去年禽流感导致数千万只鸡死亡后，鸡蛋价格创下了历史新高。

These record prices, at a time of worldwide economic problems, are especially damaging to people who use eggs as a main source of protein.

在全球经济出现问题之际，创纪录的价格对那些以鸡蛋为主要蛋白质来源的人尤其不利。

Wild birds are mainly responsible for spreading the virus, experts say.

专家表示，野生鸟类是传播病毒的主要载体。

Waterfowl like ducks can carry the disease without dying and pass it to poultry through contaminated waste, saliva and other means.

诸如鸭子之类的水禽可以携带这种疾病而不会死亡，并通过受污染的排泄物、唾液和其他方式将其传播给家禽。

Farmers' best efforts to protect their birds are falling short.

农民为保护他们的家禽所做的努力还不够。

In the United States, Rose Acre Farms, the country's second-largest egg producer, lost about 1.5 million chickens at a Guthrie County, Iowa, production farm last year.

在美国，美国第二大鸡蛋生产商罗斯阿克农场去年在爱荷华州格思里县的一个养殖场损失了大约150万只鸡。

These losses occurred even though anyone who entered barns was required to shower first to remove any sign of the virus, Chief Executive Marcus Rust said.

该公司首席执行官马库斯·鲁斯特说，尽管进入畜棚的人都被要求先消毒，但还是造成了这些损失。

A company farm in Weld County, Colorado, was infected twice within about six months, killing more than 3 million chickens, Rust said.

鲁斯特说，科罗拉多州韦尔德县的一个公司农场在大约六个月内感染了两次，导致300多万只鸡死亡。

He thinks wind blew the virus in from nearby fields where geese left their waste.

他认为是风把病毒从附近的田地吹进来的，那里有鹅排泄的粪便。

The U.S., Britain, France and Japan are among the countries that have suffered record losses of poultry over the past year, leaving some farmers feeling helpless.

在过去的一年里，美国、英国、法国和日本等国遭受了创纪录的家禽损失，这让一些养殖户感到无助。

"Avian flu is occurring even in a new poultry farm with modern equipment and no windows, so all we could do now is ask God to avoid an outbreak," said Shigeo Inaba, who raises chickens for meat in Ibaraki, near Tokyo.

在东京附近的茨城养鸡的稻叶茂雄说：“即使是在一个设备现代化、没有窗户的新家禽养殖场，禽流感也在发生，所以我们现在所能做的就是祈求上帝不要让疫情爆发。”

The virus is usually deadly to poultry, and entire groups of birds are killed when even one bird tests positive.

这种病毒通常对家禽是致命的，即使只有一只家禽检测呈阳性，整群家禽都要被杀死。

Vaccinations are not a simple solution: they may reduce but not eliminate the threat from the virus, making it harder to detect its presence among the birds.

接种疫苗不是一个简单的解决方案：它们可能会减少但不会消除病毒的威胁，反而使人们更难在禽类中检测到该病毒的存在。

Still, Mexico and the European Union are among those vaccinating or considering shots.

尽管如此，墨西哥和欧盟仍在接种疫苗或考虑接种疫苗的国家之列。

Wild birds have spread the disease farther and wider around the world than ever before, likely carrying record amounts of the virus, said Gregorio Torres.

格雷戈里奥·托雷斯说，野生鸟类在世界范围内传播疫情的范围比以往任何时候都要广，它们可能携带了创纪录数量的病毒。

Torres is the head of the science department at the Paris-based World Organization for Animal Health, an intergovernmental group for animal diseases.

托雷斯是总部设在巴黎的动物疾病政府间组织世界动物卫生组织科学部的主任。

The virus changed from previous outbreaks to a form that is probably more easily spread, he told Reuters.

他告诉路透社，这种病毒从之前的突然爆发变成了一种可能更容易传播的形式。

"The disease is here to stay at least in the short term," Torres said.

托雷斯说：“这种疾病至少在短期内会持续存在。”

While the virus can infect people, usually those who have contact with infected birds, the World Health Organization says the risk to humans remains low.

虽然这种病毒可以感染人，通常是那些接触过受感染禽类的人，但世界卫生组织表示，人类感染这种病毒的风险仍然很低。

I'm John Russell.

约翰·拉塞尔为您播报。