A Chequer-Board of Nights and Days

Stories like this one make the embryonic state of preparation for bird flu in the United States exceedingly frightening:

Japanese quails suffering from a low pathogenic strain of bird flu were discovered in a Sun Valley quail farm.

The Bureau of Humane Law Enforcement, a non-governmental, nonprofit organization devoted to defending animals, began investigating conditions at the now-defunct L.A. Quail Farm earlier this year.

The agency served a warrant at the farm and discovered the quails living in unsanitary conditions with a multitude of illnesses.

All the animals were seized on Nov. 12 and were tested.

The bureau's veterinarian determined many of the birds had a variety of diseases, fast-moving respiratory ailments, infections, injuries and lesions. Most disturbing was the diagnosis of a low pathogenic strain of avian influenza among the quails, which had been raised and kept at the facility.