All articles tagged with #bird flu
A bird flu outbreak at a Salt Lake County mink farm is killing most of the herd, with no clear state or federal response plan due to regulatory gaps. Advocates warn of public health risks, while officials debate vaccination, culling, or inaction.
Australia is evacuating all staff from its Macquarie Island research station after forecasts of a lethal H5 bird flu outbreak threaten the island’s elephant seals, with pup mortality potentially as high as 90%. About 24 inhabitants will depart, and RSV Nuyina will collect personnel in late September or October. No active seal-control measures will be pursued due to remoteness, though successful invasive species eradication on the island is expected to aid future seal recovery.
Australia will evacuate 24 Macquarie Island expeditioners in October to avoid the psychological and operational impact of a potential bird-flu outbreak near a large elephant-seal colony, with the RSV Nuyina set to retrieve the team and remote monitoring planned; the roughly $370m station rebuild is temporarily slowed but long-term Antarctic presence will continue.
Victoria is vaccinating wild little penguins against H5N1 bird flu, with over 1,000 birds receiving their first dose as part of what officials say could be the world’s largest such program; about 5,000 penguins on Phillip Island and nearby areas will receive two doses, administered after trapping and weighing the birds, with a second dose due in three weeks, as biosecurity efforts continue alongside a broader wildlife protection plan.
Backyard bird feeding is popular in Australia, but it can create hotspots for the H5N1 bird flu, potentially spreading among wild birds, scavengers, and even mammals in the region; experts advise either stopping feeding altogether or taking precautions—feed less to reduce congregation, avoid hand-feeding, clean feeders with domestic bleach, and report sick or dead wildlife to authorities.
Victoria is rolling out what officials call the world’s largest wild-bird vaccination program, aiming to vaccinate more than 5,000 little penguins at Phillip Island and St Kilda against H5N1 bird flu with a two-dose vaccine. The effort, plus vaccination of some captive birds in New Zealand and Australian zoos, uses an inactivated vaccine that requires boosters to raise antibody levels. Vaccines reduce disease impact and transmission but aren’t foolproof, and the virus will continue to evolve, necessitating ongoing vaccine development amid climate-change pressures on wildlife.
Australia will begin a targeted vaccination program against H5N1 for native birds, prioritizing vulnerable species and those in captivity, using AU$2 million worth of vaccines (about 1,500 vials) with rollout managed by states and territories. Each bird will receive two doses, and the effort aims to protect high-risk wildlife as the outbreak continues, while human risk remains low.
Three weeks after H5 bird flu appeared on South Australia’s Limestone Coast, communities report rising numbers of sick and dead birds, prompting wildlife carers to use PPE and tighten protocols while authorities collect reports and monitor transmission; a mass mortality event at Baudin Rocks highlights the crisis, with concern expanding to threatened species like fairy terns and marine mammals, and veterinarians warning that slowing the spread is essential as Victoria documents more dead terns—indicating a long, difficult path ahead for wildlife and those who care for them.
A dead pelican found on Bathers Beach in Fremantle has heightened concerns that H5 bird flu has reached Australia, with authorities saying the virus poses a very high risk to pelicans and the bird is being tested after reports to the Emergency Animal Disease Hotline. While officials monitor the situation, some local deaths could also be due to botulism amid hot weather. Public reports are aiding DPIRD’s response as tests proceed and officials assess the threat.
Australia warns that H5N1 bird flu is likely to spread after the first mass seabird die-off off Cape Jaffa near Adelaide, with testing confirming the virus in 49 dead and 35 sick greater crested terns. There’s no evidence of farm infections yet, but officials expect more wildlife cases as birds move. Measures include stronger biosecurity, shore-bird testing, vaccination of vulnerable species, and war-gaming response plans. While the global outbreak has caused mass wildlife deaths and financial losses, the human risk remains low for now.
Australia is contending with a worsening H5N1 bird flu outbreak in wildlife, with 53 confirmed detections across five states (SA accounts for 39), including mass seabird mortality and suspected inland transmission near Seal Bay. While there are no poultry detections yet, the risk is rising, prompting stronger surveillance, farm biosecurity measures, and consideration of vaccination for vulnerable wildlife. Officials urge the public not to touch sick or dead birds, record sightings, and report them to the Emergency Animal Disease Hotline at 1800 675 888.
New Zealand, once the last bird-flu-free country in Oceania, confirmed two alive H5N1 infections and began vaccinating about 300 breeding pairs across five critically endangered native species (notably kakapo and takahe) to shield wildlife, while tightening biosecurity and planning for potential poultry culling if an outbreak spreads; kiwis are not yet included in vaccination.
New Zealand confirmed two live birds infected with the H5N1 bird flu, prompting a rapid vaccination program for about 300 breeding pairs of five critically endangered native species (notably kakāpō and takahē) to reduce extinction risk. Kiwi is excluded from the first phase due to population size. Authorities are also enforcing biosecurity measures at colonies and testing wildlife as the virus spreads, with mass culling as a potential option if an outbreak escalates. The outcome for native species remains uncertain as experts monitor the situation.
New Zealand has confirmed its first H5N1 bird flu case in a wild brown skua on a Wellington beach. Authorities report no current mass wildlife deaths or wild-to-wild transmission and have a national surveillance program plus a vaccination effort for five endangered species in captivity, including kākāpō and takahē. Scientists warn some native species, especially colonial shorebirds, could be highly vulnerable, making this a major conservation and cultural concern for the country.
Box Elder County in Utah declared a local state of emergency after a dairy farm tested positive for highly pathogenic avian influenza, triggering quarantine measures that affect about half of the county’s dairy cows and farms and enabling state and federal support to help farmers amid severe milk production losses.