health
More than 13,000 seal pups die on remote Australian island amid bird flu outbreak
Testing confirms spread of deadly H5N1 virus on the subantarctic Heard Island, about 4,000km south-west of Perth
TL;DR
- More than 13,000 seal pups died on Heard Island due to H5N1 bird flu.
- Death rates for southern elephant seal pups reached an average of 76%, with some locations seeing up to 97% mortality.
- Six out of nine species on Heard Island have tested positive for H5N1, including seals, penguins, and petrels.
- The virus was likely introduced from the French subantarctic Crozet Islands.
- This is the first detection of H5N1 in an Australian external territory, indicating eastward spread.
- Australia has allocated an additional $11.2 million for H5N1 preparedness for mainland native species.
- The public is urged to report sightings of sick or dead birds or marine mammals.