Bird flu claims first mainland mammal victim in Australia
A long-nosed fur seal has died from H5 bird flu in South Australia, the first confirmed mammal death from the virus on the Australian mainland. It follows mass bird die-offs reported earlier in the week.
South Australia has recorded the first confirmed mammal death from bird flu on the Australian mainland, after a long-nosed fur seal was found dead on Wednesday at Beachport on the state's Limestone Coast, infected with the highly pathogenic H5 strain.
The discovery follows several mass mortality events announced this week by South Australian premier Peter Malinauskas, in which more than 1,000 greater crested terns died on offshore islands. A little penguin found on Kangaroo Island has also tested positive for H5.
The virus, which has killed millions of birds worldwide, has increasingly been crossing over into mammal species, including elephant seals elsewhere in the world. Australia's federal government has assessed long-nosed fur seals and the endangered Australian sea lion as facing very high risk from the disease.
Authorities describe the seal's death as a fresh escalation in the virus's spread, raising concerns about its potential impact on marine mammal populations in the region.
