GAINESVILLE, Ga. — We are in the third month of 2026, and the current bird flu outbreak is showing no signs of slowing down. Not only are more birds being affected, but the virus is impacting species that have never been infected before. Recently, the USDA and researchers with the University of California confirmed HPAI in multiple northern elephant seal pups.
As for poultry flocks, Pennsylvania still remains the most affected state in the past 30 days. The most recent detection was Feb. 24 in Lancaster County. More than 160,000 birds were affected at a commercial broiler farm, according to USDA data.
Also on Feb. 24, Kansas reentered the headlines for HPAI detections. The month of January was rough for the Kansas poultry industry. In total, the state had six virus detections with more than 400,000 birds affected among commercial and backyard poultry flocks in various counties, according to USDA data.
Now, in February, Kansas has only had two detections. This most recent detection on the 24th affected 24,000 birds at a commercial table egg breeder facility in Pottawatomie County, according to USDA data.
Another state leading the nation in HPAI detections is Indiana. Detections have started to occur more frequently after the state’s quiet start to the year. Since Feb. 23, there has been a confirmation of bird flu almost every day, according to data from the Indiana Board of Animal Health.
On Feb. 23, Daviess County reported its first case of bird flu since January of 2024, according to USDA data. More than 30,000 birds were infected at a commercial turkey meat farm.
Between Feb. 24 and March 1, LaGrange County, Ind., had five bird flu detections with a total of 64,297 birds affected, according to data from the Indiana BOAH. Although all in the same county, the detections came from various facilities, including commercial meat duck, egg layer, and breeder duck facilities.
Within that same time frame, there was also a detection in Crawford County on Feb. 27, where almost 50,000 birds were affected at a commercial egg layer facility.
Over in the Delmarva region, Caroline County, Md., has become a hotspot for HPAI activity. The county had back-to-back detections on Feb. 25 and 26, both at a commercial broiler farm, according to the Maryland Department of Agriculture.
More than 150,000 birds were affected at both farms, according to USDA data. Caroline County is now responsible for all of the state’s bird flu detections except for one this year.
Also in the Delmarva peninsula, Delaware recently confirmed its second commercial case of bird flu of 2026. A commercial broiler flock of more than 32,000 birds were affected, according to USDA data. The other commercial case this year was also in Kent County.
Other states with recent bird flu detections include South Dakota, North Carolina, and Wisconsin. In South Dakota, a commercial turkey meat facility was impacted by the virus, and more than 50,000 birds were affected in Beadle County.
In North Carolina, more than 3 million birds were infected by the virus at a commercial table egg layer facility in Hyde County, according to data from the North Carolina Department of Agriculture & Consumer Services. This is the third commercial case for the state this year but the first in Hyde County, according to USDA data.
Wisconsin reported its first case of bird flu of the year on Feb 27. In Jefferson County, more than 1 million birds were affected at a commercial table egg layer facility, according to USDA data. The last time Wisconsin had a commercial case was in October 2025, also in Jefferson County.
On March 5, APHIS reported that for the previous 30 days there have been 36 commercial flocks and 31 backyard flocks affected by HPAI. Commercial flocks include 13 in Pennsylvania and 8 in Indiana. These combined national confirmations totaled 11.54 million affected birds.
For more information on bird flu, visit APHIS at https://www.aphis.usda.gov/livestock-poultry-disease/avian/avian-influenza.
