Australia has confirmed local transmission of the highly contagious H5 strain of bird flu among wild birds, raising concerns that the virus could spread more widely across the country’s wildlife population.
The development was announced on Wednesday by Australia’s Chief Veterinary Officer, Beth Cookson, who said the emergence of local transmission could lead to a broader outbreak among wild birds.
“This news of some local transmission may mean we start to see wider spread among wild birds,” Cookson said.
She warned that a widespread outbreak could have serious consequences for wildlife species that are vulnerable to the virus.
“Once the virus becomes widespread in wild bird populations, it will not be possible to avoid losses in susceptible wildlife,” she added.
Australia had remained the only continental landmass without the H5 strain, which has caused severe illness and deaths among poultry and wild birds in different parts of the world.
The country recorded its first case in June after the virus was detected in a migratory seabird. Further testing has now confirmed that the virus is circulating among greater crested terns along the coast of South Australia.
According to the national science laboratory, seven additional cases were identified in greater crested terns in South Australia, taking the total number of confirmed detections nationwide to 27.
Agriculture Minister Julie Collins said there was currently no indication of widespread deaths among wild birds and maintained that the risk to human health remained low.
“There is no evidence of mass mortalities,” Collins said, adding that Australia’s poultry sector had not been affected by the outbreak.
The H5 strain has been detected in a range of wild bird species globally, including waterfowl, shorebirds, seabirds and birds of prey.
The virus has also affected some mammals, including marine mammals, while isolated detections have been reported in animals such as cats, goats, alpacas and pigs.
Four suspected cases were also reported on Wednesday on Kangaroo Island in South Australia, an important tourist destination that supports a significant population of endangered sea lions.
South Australia’s Minister for Primary Industries, Clare Scriven, said beach tours on the island would be temporarily suspended as a precautionary measure to protect the animals.
The outbreak has heightened concerns about the potential impact of H5 bird flu on Australia’s unique wildlife. Nearly half of the country’s wild bird species and 83 per cent of its mammal species are found nowhere else in the world.
Australian scientists said the virus had already killed more than 13,000 elephant seal pups after spreading through a breeding colony on the remote Heard and McDonald Islands in June.
