Raccoons, native to N America, imported to Japan as pets and later released into wild.
Now widely distributed ....
http://www.cdc.gov/eid/content/17/4/714.htmHighly Pathogenic Avian Influenza Virus Infection in Feral Raccoons, Japan
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Together, these data suggest that feral raccoons in Japan have been infected with subtype H5N1 viruses of different clades.
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Because wild raccoons are omnivores and highly opportunistic at exploiting foods they prefer, whenever available they could eat diseased or dead migratory birds from areas where subtype H5N1 viruses are enzootic. They also sometimes attack poultry farms for food, creating the potential to transmit virus to domestic poultry.
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