Researchers find avian influenza in New York bobcats

Avian influenza was found in 16 bobcats last year, according to a newly published study. Widespread exposure to the infectious disease was found in live bobcats with these animals surviving and succumbing to the highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) H5N1 strain.¹

The infected bobcats in New York state were part of a 2024 investigation of mammal wildlife with results published in the Journal of Wildlife Diseases in March 2025. The research—funded by the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation and the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases—underscores the importance of monitoring disease in wildlife and documents an increase of HPAI in mammals, according to the authors.¹

Photo: Photography by Adri

“While it’s notable and promising that some bobcats have survived exposure, a key takeaway is that these animals can and do die from infection,” Jennifer Bloodgood, DVM, PhD, MS, senior author, assistant professor of practice in the Department of Public and Ecosystem Health and wildlife veterinarian in the Cornell Wildlife Health Lab, both in the Cornell University College of Veterinary Medicine (CVM) in Ithaca, New York, said in a news release.¹ “Our research highlights the presence of avian influenza virus in wild bobcats, raising concerns about the potential impact on population health.”

HPAI is currently circulating throughout the US and around the world. The disease has spread from wild birds to poultry, dairy cattle, domestic cats, and other species, including humans. According to the CVM, it is important to understand how individuals can reduce risk of exposure, and the institute offers resources on its website for veterinarians.²

The HPAI strain H5N1 has been found in a variety of mammal species such as bears, raccoons, red foxes, skunks, opossums and rodents.³ In fact, the order Carnivora, which includes bobcats, contains the highest number of mammal species affected by H5N1, according to investigators. They surmised that this is likely a result of consuming infected carcasses and avian prey.⁴

“Carnivores are one of the most affected species right now, and it’s very understudied and challenging to tease apart risk factors,” Haley Turner, the study’s first author and a master’s student with the New York Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences (CALS), said in a news release.¹ “Detecting antibodies only tells us about individuals that survived long enough to be sampled. What it doesn’t capture are those animals that died quickly from the infection or were too ill to be trapped. Therefore, it’s not possible to infer survival rates for the population as a whole.”

To track the bobcats, Turner tracked the bobcats by connecting with licensed trappers, who called the investigator when they captured a bobcat. The research team then administered anesthesia, drew blood samples and fitted the bobcats with GPS collars as part of a larger study to estimate bobcat abundance. The animals reportedly slept for 40 to 45 minutes before being released where they were captured, according to the study authors,¹

Influenza antibodies were found in 9 of 16 live-captured bobcats between January 9 and March 3, 2024. Four of the 9 felines with influenza antibodies showed evidence of exposure to H5N1 and 5 more bobcats showed exposure to other strains of the virus. Of the 4 bobcats exposed to H5N1, 2 were confirmed alive in November 2024. Although the other 2 bobcats were alive in June 2024, when their GPS collars stopped communicating, their current status remains unknown, according to investigators.^1.4

One bobcat died from H5N1 within 5 weeks after testing negative for HPAI. “Our pathologist identified viral-associated inflammation in the brain. After we tested for avian influenza and detected the virus, we then used advanced staining techniques to visualize avian influenza antigen in the brain,” Bloodgood said.¹ “Now we’re able to say that these areas of encephalitis or inflammation were associated with the virus and can conclude that this animal died from avian influenza.”

Takeaways

Avian influenza has spread to more than a dozen US mammals, including humans. Although other states have documented cases of influenza in bobcats, the newly published study is unique in detecting the first flu-related death of a bobcat in New York and documenting the presence of antibodies to avian influenza in bobcats.¹

According to Turner, the study is not only about individual cases. “The real value lies in what proactive disease monitoring can reveal about emerging threats to wildlife populations, before a disease causes widespread population declines,” Turner said.¹ “Without this work, we might never have known that a bobcat died from avian influenza in the wild. This study is a step toward understanding how diseases like avian influenza affect wildlife health in real-time.”

References

1. Avian influenza discovered in NYS bobcats. News release. Cornell University College of Veterinary Medicine. March 27, 2025.
2. Highly pathogenic avian influenza (bird flu) resource center. Cornell University College of Veterinary Medicine. March 12, 2025. Accessed April 3, 2025. https://www.vet.cornell.edu/highly-pathogenic-avian-influenza-bird-flu-resource-center
3. Wildlife. Cornell University College of Veterinary Medicine. March 20, 2025. Accessed April 3, 2025. https://www.vet.cornell.edu/highly-pathogenic-avian-influenza-bird-flu-resource-center/wildlife
4. Turner HM, Fuller AK, Twining JP, et al. Highly pathogenic avian influenza virus exposure and infection in free-ranging bobcats (Lynx rufus) in New York, USA. J Wild Dis. March 19, 2025. Accessed April 3, 2025. https://doi.org/10.7589/JWD-D-24-00137