U.S. poultry losses from the 2022–2026 HPAI outbreak have surpassed 200 million birds, with Wisconsin's Daybreak Foods losing more than 4.3 million birds across three flocks in two weeks and North Carolina recording the year's largest single flock loss at 3.2 million Hyde County hens. Illinois confirmed three commercial turkey outbreaks in less than a week, and LaGrange County, Indiana continues to see persistent clustering of cases. H5N1 was confirmed for the first time in northern elephant seals at California's Año Nuevo Reserve, while Argentina recorded additional commercial poultry losses as H5N1 spread to wild and backyard birds across Colombia, Brazil, and Uruguay.
Wisconsin Loses Over 4.3 Million Birds Across Three Farms
In the past two weeks alone, Wisconsin has confirmed three commercial poultry HPAI detections in 2026, all involving Daybreak Foods facilities and each exceeding one million birds. The first, confirmed February 27 in Jefferson County, affected 1,220,000 laying hens (Graber, 2026a). Two additional flocks were confirmed March 10 — 1,621,800 pullets in Jefferson County and 1,493,600 laying hens in Walworth County — bringing the state's 2026 total to more than 4.3 million birds lost (Graber, 2026g). All affected premises have been quarantined and depopulated. Daybreak Foods, headquartered in Lake Mills, raises more than 24 million laying hens and experienced multiple HPAI detections at its Jefferson County facilities in 2025 as well. State and county public health departments are monitoring exposed farmworkers for symptoms in both Jefferson and Walworth counties (Heim, 2026).
North Carolina Loses 3.2 Million Hens; Indiana's LaGrange County Continues Spread
USDA APHIS confirmed HPAI in a 3,263,100-bird laying hen flock in Hyde County, North Carolina on February 27, marking the largest single flock loss in the U.S. so far in 2026. On the same date, four outbreaks were confirmed in LaGrange County, Indiana — a duck meat bird flock of 6,300, a duck breeder flock of 3,800, and two poultry flocks of 19,900 and 23,700 birds — collectively affecting 53,700 birds. LaGrange County has been among the most persistently affected areas in the country this season. Continued clustering of detections in the Midwest show no signs of slowing (Graber, 2026b).
U.S. Poultry Losses From HPAI Surpass 200 Million Birds
Cumulative U.S. commercial poultry losses from the 2022–2026 HPAI outbreak crossed 200 million birds on March 10, when the two Wisconsin Daybreak Foods flocks totaling over 3.1 million birds pushed the running total to 200,650,010. Including commercial upland gamebirds, losses reach 201,752,650. The majority of losses across the five-year outbreak have fallen on the egg industry, which surpassed 150 million hen and pullet losses in mid-February (Graber, 2026h).
Illinois Records Three Commercial Turkey Outbreaks in Less Than a Week
Illinois confirmed three commercial turkey flock infections in rapid succession after nearly a year without a commercial poultry detection. A 20,400-bird flock in Crawford County tested positive on March 3, followed by a 52,600-bird flock in Lawrence County on March 5, and a third flock of 7,900 turkeys — also in Lawrence County — on March 6 (Graber, 2026c; Graber, 2026d). The previous commercial detection in the state had been March 20, 2025, also in Crawford County. The clustering of cases across two neighboring counties within days suggests active regional spread in southern Illinois (Graber, 2026f).
H5N1 Confirmed in Northern Elephant Seals at California Reserve
UC Davis researchers have confirmed highly pathogenic avian influenza in seven northern elephant seals at the Año Nuevo Natural Reserve near Santa Cruz, marking the first H5N1 detection in marine mammals in California and the first known infection of this species. Sick animals displaying abnormal respirations, tremors, and neurological symptoms were reported late last week, with samples from deceased seals returning positive results by Tuesday night. Año Nuevo State Park hosts approximately 5,000 seals during the winter breeding season, with 1,350 present on the beach when the outbreak began; all public seal viewings and tours have since been closed. Researchers noted that most adult females had already departed for routine migrations before the outbreak, and the majority of remaining animals appear healthy. H5N1 previously killed large numbers of southern elephant seals in Argentina in 2023 (Soucheray, 2026).
Dead Geese Continue to Appear Across New Jersey and New York
Dead geese were reported in Woodstown, Salem County, New Jersey in early March, approximately two weeks after more than 1,100 geese died across the state in what officials believe was an H5N1 wave. The earlier deaths spanned multiple counties including Monmouth, Somerset, Burlington, Middlesex, and Camden. Dead geese were also reported along the beaches of East Hampton, New York over the same weekend. Authorities have not issued formal laboratory confirmation in either instance, though bird flu is considered the likely cause (Fernandes, 2026).
Argentina Poultry Losses Mount as H5N1 Spreads Across South America
Two additional commercial poultry flocks in Argentina have tested positive for highly pathogenic avian influenza, according to a WOAH report, following the country's first confirmed commercial case since regaining disease-free status in September 2025. A nearly 19,800-bird breeding flock in Lobos confirmed positive on February 25, and a laying hen flock in Alejo Ledesma confirmed on March 3; flock size for the latter was not disclosed. WOAH also reported several backyard detections across Buenos Aires province. Elsewhere in South America, backyard and wild bird infections were confirmed in Colombia, Brazil, and Uruguay (Graber, 2026e).
References
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United States Department of Agriculture. (2024, June 20). HPAI Confirmations in Commercial and Backyard Flocks. Www.aphis.usda.gov. https://www.aphis.usda.gov/livestock-poultry-disease/avian/avian-influenza/hpai-detections/commercial-backyard-flocks