The chicken roundabout is a roundabout located on the A143 road, on the Bungay and Ditchingham bypass in Suffolk, United Kingdom. The roundabout was famous for being the habitat for a large group of feral chickens, which were fed and cared for by a local man until their numbers declined and they were relocated in 2010.
The poultry pre-dated the roundabout, having lived at the site for decades before its construction. [1] They are thought to have escaped from an allotment and survived on grain from a nearby maltings, which burned down in 1999. [2] They were fed and cared for by Bungay resident Gordon Knowles for almost two decades, during which time they at one point numbered 300. [1]
In 2000, Norfolk County Council planned to move the birds over safety concerns [3] but backtracked following protests. [4] [5] In 2002 the flock was threatened again when campaigners reported the chickens were being "systematically – we think – stolen and sold". [5]
2006 saw an increase in numbers, to a total of over 100, thought to be the result of pet owners' fears over avian flu; [6] and a decline, attributed to people feeding them rat poison, which led to their numbers being reduced to around six. [7]
In July 2009, some 70 chickens went missing from the flock of around 100. An RSPCA inspector commented that "Some may have been taken by foxes or other natural predators, but there is a possibility that others may have [been] stolen or harmed." [8] In 2010 the remaining six birds were given to an animal charity. [1] Knowles said he would stop looking after the chickens as he could no longer bear to see them maltreated. [9]
In 2012, a plaque was unveiled celebrating Knowles's work, and a ceremony held at which Bungay town councillor Deirdre Shepherd described Knowles as "a living legend" and "one of the last of the great eccentrics". [10] [11] Also in 2012 a campaign was launched to commemorate the chickens with a series of statues; [4] however in January 2013 Ditchingham Parish Council blocked plans for the "Chicken of the East" statue, which it described as a safety hazard. [12]
In February 2013, a group of five miniature hens were left on the roundabout, [13] [14] [15] but were relocated days later. [1] Gordon Knowles, known as the "Chicken Man of Bungay", died in January 2020. [16]
Poultry are domesticated birds kept by humans for the purpose of harvesting useful animal products such as meat, eggs or feathers, and the practice of raising poultry is known as poultry farming. These birds are most typically members of the superorder Galloanserae (fowl), especially the order Galliformes. The term also includes waterfowls of the family Anatidae and other flying birds that are kept and killed for their meat such as the young pigeons, but does not include wild birds hunted for food known as game or quarry.
Ditchingham is a village and civil parish in the English county of Norfolk. It is located across the River Waveney from Bungay, Suffolk.
Debeaking, beak trimming, or beak conditioning is the partial removal of the beak of poultry, especially layer hens and turkeys although it may also be performed on quail and ducks. Most commonly, the beak is shortened permanently, although regrowth can occur. The trimmed lower beak is somewhat longer than the upper beak. A similar but separate practice, usually performed by an avian veterinarian or an experienced birdkeeper, involves clipping, filing or sanding the beaks of captive birds for health purposes – in order to correct or temporarily to alleviate overgrowths or deformities and better allow the bird to go about its normal feeding and preening activities. Amongst raptor-keepers, this practice is commonly known as "coping".
Avian influenza, also known as avian flu, is a bird flu caused by the influenza A virus, which can infect people. It is similar to other types of animal flu in that it is caused by a virus strain that has adapted to a specific host. The type with the greatest risk is highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI).
Bernard Matthews Foods Limited is a British farming and food products business with its headquarters in Great Witchingham, Norfolk, England, which specialises in turkey products.
The global spread of H5N1 influenza in birds is considered a significant pandemic threat. While other H5N1 influenza strains are known, they are significantly different on a genetic level from a recent, highly pathogenic, emergent strain of H5N1, which was able to achieve hitherto unprecedented global spread in 2008. The H5N1 strain is a fast-mutating, highly pathogenic avian influenza virus (HPAI) found in multiple bird species. It is both epizootic and panzootic. Unless otherwise indicated, "H5N1" in this timeline refers to the recent highly pathogenic strain of H5N1.
H5 N2 is a subtype of the species Influenzavirus A. The subtype infects a wide variety of birds, including chickens, ducks, turkeys, falcons, and ostriches. Affected birds usually do not appear ill, and the disease is often mild as avian influenza viral subtypes go. Some variants of the subtype are much more pathogenic than others, and outbreaks of "high-path" H5N2 result in the culling of thousands of birds in poultry farms from time to time. It appears that people who work with birds can be infected by the virus, but suffer hardly any noticeable health effects. Even people exposed to the highly pathogenic H5N2 variety that killed ostrich chicks in South Africa only seem to have developed conjunctivitis, or a perhaps a mild respiratory illness. There is no evidence of human-to-human spread of H5N2. On November 12, 2005 it was reported that a falcon was found to have H5N2.
Influenza A virus subtype H7N7 (A/H7N7) is a subtype of Influenza A virus, a genus of Orthomyxovirus, the viruses responsible for influenza. Highly pathogenic strains (HPAI) and low pathogenic strains (LPAI) exist. H7N7 can infect humans, birds, pigs, seals, and horses in the wild; and has infected mice in laboratory studies. This unusual zoonotic potential represents a pandemic threat.
Influenza A virus subtype H7N3 (A/H7N3) is a subtype of the species Influenza A virus.
H5N8 is a subtype of the influenza A virus and is highly lethal to wild birds and poultry. H5N8 is typically not associated with humans. However, seven people in Russia were found to be infected in 2021, becoming the first documented human cases.
The global spread of H5N1 in birds is considered a significant pandemic threat.
The Hollywood Freeway chickens are a colony of feral chickens that live under the Vineland Avenue off-ramp of the Hollywood Freeway in Los Angeles, California. It is not definitively known how they came to be there, although news stories generally ascribe them to an overturned poultry truck.
The 2007 Bernard Matthews H5N1 outbreak was an occurrence of avian influenza in England caused by the H5N1 subtype of Influenza virus A that began on 30 January 2007. The infection affected poultry at one of Bernard Matthews' farms in Holton in Suffolk. It was the third instance of H5N1-subtype detected in the United Kingdom and a range of precautions were instituted to prevent spread of the disease including a large cull of turkeys, the imposition of segregation zones, and a disinfection programme for the plant.
Poultry farming is the form of animal husbandry which raises domesticated birds such as chickens, ducks, turkeys and geese to produce meat or eggs for food. Poultry – mostly chickens – are farmed in great numbers. More than 60 billion chickens are killed for consumption annually. Chickens raised for eggs are known as layers, while chickens raised for meat are called broilers.
The global spread of H5N1 in birds is considered a significant pandemic threat.
Poultry farming is a part of the United States's agricultural economy.
Keeping chickens as pets, for eggs, meat, or for eating pests is popular in urban and suburban areas. Some people sell the eggs for side income.
The broiler industry is the process by which broiler chickens are reared and prepared for meat consumption. Worldwide, in 2005 production was 71,851,000 tonnes. From 1985 to 2005, the broiler industry grew by 158%.
In 2015, an outbreak of avian influenza subtype H5N2 was identified in a series of chicken and turkey farming operations in the Midwestern United States. By May 30, more than 43 million birds in 15 states had been destroyed as a result of the outbreak, including nearly 30 million in Iowa alone, the nation's largest egg producer. In the Midwestern U.S., the average price of eggs had increased 120% between April 22 and May 30. The effects however were seen nationwide, with prices in California up 71% in the same timeframe.
In the early 2020s, an ongoing outbreak of avian influenza subtype H5N8 has been occurring at poultry farms and among wild bird populations in several countries and continents, leading to the subsequent cullings of millions of birds to prevent a pandemic similar to that of the H5N1 outbreak in 2008. The first case of human transmission of avian flu, also known as bird flu, was reported by Russian authorities in February 2021, as several poultry farm workers tested positive for the virus.
