Bird Flu Reaches Middle East

Per the BBC, tests on a migratory wild flamingo found last week on a Kuwaiti beach showed it had the H5N1 avian flu. A falcon found in a shipment at Kuwait Airport had the milder H5N2 strain.

Kuwait and other Middle East states have banned wild bird imports and all poultry from Asian states. But there's little they -- and any other nation -- can do to stop the spread of H5N1 via migrating wild birds, which are quickly spreading the disease from southeastern Asia to the rest of the world.

The BBC also has an interactive map that depicts the rapid march of H5N1 bird flu since January 2004. An online rarity, something both cool and chilling.