Australia detects first 2 H5N1 bird flu cases in the wild
The find ends Australia’s status as the only H5-free continent, while poultry producers tighten biosecurity and await tracing results.
Australia detected its first two H5N1 bird flu cases in wild birds in Western Australia, in a brown skua and a giant petrel. The findings end Australia’s status as the only continent not to have recorded an H5 strain. Agriculture Minister Julie Collins said the government is now checking whether the virus has spread more widely in wildlife or remains limited to the two birds. So far, there is no evidence of infection on commercial poultry farms or of mass bird deaths on the Australian mainland. However, more than a dozen reports of sick or dead birds have been filed, and chicken producer Inghams Group has tightened biosecurity by restricting access to farms and processing facilities in Western Australia.