H5 Bird Flu Kills 13,359 Elephant Seal Pups on Heard Island as Mortality Tops 75%
Updated
Updated · ABC News · Jun 18
H5 Bird Flu Kills 13,359 Elephant Seal Pups on Heard Island as Mortality Tops 75%
3 articles · Updated · ABC News · Jun 18
Summary
13,359 southern elephant seal pups on Heard Island are now estimated to have died from H5 bird flu, wiping out more than three-quarters of the 17,364-pup cohort after earlier counts found only hundreds dead.
97% mortality hit some harems, and researchers said the toll could still rise because deaths were continuing when January observations ended.
120 drone flights covering 1,600 kilometres, backed by ground searches and viral genome analysis, produced the new estimate and let scientists survey remote breeding sites with limited wildlife disturbance.
H5 was also detected in king penguins, gentoo penguins, Antarctic fur seals and two bird species, though mass mortality was seen only in the vulnerable southern elephant seals.
1,700 kilometres from the Crozet Islands, Heard Island may have received the virus via infected wildlife last August; researchers warn spread to other sub-Antarctic sites could be catastrophic even as mainland Australia remains H5-free.