WICHITA, Kan. (KWCH) – After a year of closure, a popular exhibit at Sedgwick County Zoo is open again. Again, the Tropics building is open for visitors to see different birds from around the world. The closure of the exhibit was due to the threat of bird flu in the area.
Jennica King, director of marketing and communications at the Sedgwick County Zoo, spoke about efforts to keep birds and the people who value them safe.
Highly pathogenic avian influenza, (HPI), more commonly known as “bird flu” or “bird flu,” can be deadly and “devastating,” King said.
“HPAI is a life-threatening disease that primarily affects wild birds. If a guest were to come into contact with wild bird feces on her shoe, she could potentially expose our birds here to HPAI,” King said.
The disease can cause human health problems due to the foods we eat produced by birds.
“Many people may notice that the price of their eggs is going up and the price of chicken at the store is going up, and that’s because wild birds have infected some of our poultry farms,” King explained.
For this reason, the Sedgwick County Zoo continues to take precautions.
“Let’s keep an eye on the place [incidents] of HPAI in our area. If positive cases are found within a certain mile radius, we will close our bird exhibit again to ensure everyone is safe,” King said.
With the situation surrounding bird flu under control, King said the time was right to reopen the zoo’s Tropics building.
