Sparrows recognize the pathogen

Healthy home sparrows tend to avoid contact with sick home sparrow, raising hopes to monitor the spread of diseases affecting humans such as bird flu, according to AFP.

>>>Detecting Sillem mountain finches after more than 80 years missing

The results of laboratory studies show that finches can distinguish healthy and sick home finches.

This North American sparrow is characterized by a tendency to stay away from sick finches.

House finches often live in groups

This is the first time scientists have recorded avoidance of contact with sick members in house finches. Previously, science has recorded phenomena in lobsters and bullfrogs.

The team of scientists also found that home finches with weak immune systems and less able to resist infection, avoid contact with infected sparrows.

Maxine Zylberg of the California Academy of Sciences (USA), a member of the research team, said the results of the study are particularly important because they can help detect, predict when and how infectious diseases can affect birds and humans, such as H5N1 bird flu.

Avian influenza H5N1 spreads from poultry to humans through direct contact. The disease caused 359 deaths in 15 countries, mainly in Asia and Africa from 2003 to August this year, according to figures from the World Health Organization.

The research is published in the journal San Biology Letters.