SYDNEY: Bird flu has killed more than 75 per cent of southern elephant seal pups on remote Heard Island, according to new research published in the scientific journal BioRxiv.
Scientists estimate that about 13,000 baby seals from a group of 17,000 on Heard Island were killed by the H5N1 strain of bird flu since last August. In one area, 97 per cent of baby seals had died.
The research, based on drone surveys and ground visits to the hard-to-reach islands, found six of nine species tested positive for the H5N1 strain, including king and gentoo penguins, Antarctic fur seals and the South Georgia diving petrel.
“These observations of H5 bird flu at Heard Island and McDonald Island are the first detection in an Australian external territory and show the continued eastward movement of the virus around the sub-Antarctic,” lead author Dr Julie McInnes said.
The mortality rate may be an underestimate as pups were still dying at the time of the final surveys, researchers said.
Scientists believe bird flu was likely introduced to the islands last August from migrating birds from the French-owned Crozet Islands, about 1,800 kilometres away.
Australia is the only continent with no cases of the H5N1 strain which has spread among birds worldwide and affected some mammals.
Environment Minister Murray Watt said the seal deaths were “sobering” and showed Australia must not be complacent.
“We must be realistic about the likelihood of an incursion here, and plan accordingly,” he said.
