The rise of bird flu across farms in California has raised questions about the virus and its potential threat to humans. While the threat to humans is currently small.

Photos of bare grocery refrigerator cases and tales of egg prices gone wild have been rampant on social media this winter. The scenes aren’t manufactured drama. The U.S. Department of Agriculture noted last week that some grocery stores have been limiting the number of cartons customers can buy and hanging signs announcing shortages where cartons of eggs would normally be stacked.