With seabird fallout season underway and detections of H5N1 on Oahu, state officials are urging rescuers to take precautions when handling downed birds.

The disease, also known as highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI), has not yet been detected in native seabirds, according to the Hawaii Department of Land and Natural Resources, and the risk of human transmission is low.

DLNR’s Division of Forestry and Wildlife, however, has amended its seabird rescue guidance to minimize transmission risk.

DOFAW advises anyone who finds multiple dead or sick birds of any species to call the Hawaii Department of Agriculture at 808-483-7100 during business hours, or 808-837-8092 outside of business hours.

The peak fallout season for seabirds such as young wedge-tailed shearwaters, or uau kani, is from November to December, but the season begins earlier, in mid-September.

During this time, young seabirds that rely on stars and moonlight to fly out to sea for the first time get disoriented by artificial lights at night.

They circle those artificial lights until they fall, exhausted, to the ground, where they are then vulnerable to predators or getting run over by a car.

The Hawaii Wildlife Center, a nonprofit based on Hawaii island, has once again sent a team of specialists to Oahu to help with the rescue and rehabilitation of the seabirds.

Anyone who finds a lone downed seabird can follow DOFAW guidance on what to do, whether it be contacting a local rescue group or transporting the bird to a dropoff site.

DOFAW now recommends individuals who decide to transport injured seabirds wear appropriate personal protective equipment such as gloves, face masks, eye protection, protective gowns and footwear.

“They should also practice proper hygiene and sanitize hands, clothes, towels and other items after handling any animal,” said DOFAW.

Other existing guidelines for transporting downed seabirds remain in place, DOFAW said, but potential rescuers should use extreme caution when considering whether or not to approach a seabird.

Officials said these ground-nesting birds sometimes sit in front of their burrows to exercise their wings, and if a bird is near a burrow and does not appear injured, it is likely not in distress and should not be approached.

On Nov. 15, the Hawaii Department of Agriculture confirmed the detection of H5N1 or highly pathogenic influenza, in a flock of backyard ducks and geese at Susie’s Duck Sanctuary in Wahiawa.

A total of 10 birds from that flock tested positive, including a rescued duck, rescued goose and wild zebra dove.

On Monday, the National Veterinary Services Laboratories confirmed HPAI in a wild duck on Oahu’s North Shore. The duck was part mallard and was one among 10 wild bird samples collected from the North Shore.

State officials said the most plausible route of introduction of the virus is through the Pacific flyway, which is a migratory path that includes Hawaii. The two detections have been identified as HPAI virus genotype A3, which was first identified in wild birds in Alaska and is associated with migratory birds.