Beak and Feather Disease Virus is rampant in Australia's wild Crimson Rosella

Media release

Beak and Feather Disease Virus (BFDV) is rampant in wild Crimson Rosella populations – but it might not all be bad news.

Australian researchers screened wild Crimson Rosellas and found the virus in virtually all birds (94%), more than double the previously reported rate. Despite the high rates of BFDV in wild Rosellas, this parrot species copes very well with the virus and shows no signs of disease.

The research reinforces the emerging view that some species of Australian birds show no signs of disease, while it has the potential to wipe out other species, and this has enormous implications for conservation and biodiversity efforts.

The next stage is to understand how rampant the virus is in other wild Australian bird species and why some species are asymptomatic while others are not.

Key Facts 

·                   The virus is about the smallest virus known (about 20nm, 2000 base pairs) and is highly infectious amongst parrots.

·                   There is no cure or specific treatment for it, so prevention is key.

·                   The research shows that the virus exists in (94%) virtually all crimson rosellas in the wild, over double the previously reported rate.

·                   The research reveals that current screening methods will severely underreport the true abundance and possibly the distribution of the virus in wild populations of birds in Australia.

·                   There are around 400 species of parrot in the wild.  Australia has 56 species.

·                   Although tiny, BFDV is listed by the federal government as a key threatening process to biodiversity.

·                   The research reveals that current screening methods will severely underreport the true abundance and possibly the distribution of the virus in wild populations of birds in Australia.

·                   It reinforces the emerging view, that some species cope very well with the virus and show no signs of disease.

·                   We hope this research will enable researchers to better predict which species will be more susceptible to the virus, in Australia and overseas.

·                   Other research on BFDV in birds sampled only one or two tissue types (eg blood).  By contrast, this research sampled over 10 different, tissue types.

·                   The findings show that current screening methods for this virus in wild birds (primarily using blood samples) will severely underreport the true abundance and possibly the distribution of BFDV in wild populations of birds in Australia – and overseas.