POCTEFA AVES

The kickoff meeting for the POCTEFA AVES project — Avian Viruses Emergence and Surveillance — was held in Castelnau-Magnoac, in the Hautes-Pyrénées, on 28 and 29 April 2026. This cross-border project aims to better understand, detect and anticipate the circulation of emerging avian viruses in the Pyrenees.

Over two days, the project partners met to define the shared timetable, working methods and scientific objectives to be developed across the POCTEFA area, between France and Spain. This meeting marked an important step in structuring a cross-border research network dedicated to emerging viral diseases in birds, particularly influenza viruses and Orthoflaviviruses.

Cross-border scientific cooperation

The AVES project brings together six European partners involved in health surveillance, veterinary research, ecology and epidemiology:

France: ANSES Maisons-Alfort and the National Veterinary School of Toulouse.
Spain: NEIKER, IREC-UCLM, UAB and IRTA-CReSA.

In the context of climate change and the expansion of vector-borne diseases, these issues are becoming a priority for animal health, biodiversity and the prevention of health risks.

Strategic objectives: anticipating health risks

The AVES project will run for 36 months, from 1 January 2026 to 31 December 2028. It is based on an integrated and multidisciplinary approach combining microbiology, epidemiology and ecology.

Its priorities are structured around several key areas:

· Innovative surveillance: developing and testing surveillance methods in the Pyrenees, from the field to the laboratory, particularly through telemetry monitoring, environmental DNA, xenomonitoring and metagenomics.

· Understanding viral circulation: better identifying reservoir populations, studying the genetic diversity of viruses and improving knowledge of circulation mechanisms between the different environmental compartments.

· Risk mapping: producing data to identify areas at risk of emergence and support prevention strategies at cross-border level.

· Supporting local stakeholders: proposing practical solutions for more effective field surveillance, serving public decision-makers, livestock-sector stakeholders and biodiversity conservation actors.

Through this approach, AVES helps prepare today’s responses to tomorrow’s health challenges, within a One Health framework, at the interface between animal health, human health, the environment and biodiversity.

The project in figures

· Total budget: €1,836,133.51
· ERDF funding: €1,193,486.77
· European co-financing rate: 65%
· Duration: 36 months
· Period: 1 January 2026 – 31 December 2028
· Partners: 6 European partners, including 4 in Spain and 2 in France
· Programme: Interreg VI-A Spain-France-Andorra POCTEFA 2021–2027