We gave deadly “superbugs” to the gulls, now they may give them back to us
It’s no secret that poor management of medical, biological and food waste is likely the source of antibiotic resistant bacteria and other pathogenic microbes in wild birds, especially gulls, which are opportunistic foragers.
“We do have a problem where we have a high proportion of gulls that scavenge where food waste gets mixed in with faeces, like nappies and incontinence pads from nursing homes,” Dr. Abraham said.“No. The gulls are perfectly fine,” Dr. Abraham said in email. “They act as ecological sponges that pick up drug resistant bacteria and spread them around.
Dr. Abraham and his collaborators hope this study will cause the Australian government to change how it manages waste created by farm animals, and especially by people, by developing methods for preventing scavenging birds’ access to this waste. “It could be as simple as putting nets on open sewerage areas, scaring the birds off from getting into food waste and processing soiled nappies and incontinence pads separately,” Dr. Abraham added.
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