Australians should be on high alert for more sick or dead birds this week as a storm brews in the Southern Ocean that could drive more infected birds from the Antarctic region to our coastline, raising the risk of a devastating outbreak of the H5N1 bird flu virus.
A cold front is expected to sweep past the coastline of southwest Western Australia from late Thursday evening, ratcheting up the risk of more infected seabirds landing on Australia’s southern shores from outbreak hotspots such as Heard Island.
This has been identified as the likely pathway for the two known cases of infected birds found near Esperence last week, a brown skua and giant petrele.
“Looking at the two species that have already arrived on our shores, there’s a concern that other seabirds might be pushed to our shore by more storm fronts,” said BirdLife conservation and science director Dale Last.
Australia is the final continent to record cases the H5N1 bird flu, which has killed millions of wild birds and mammals across the world, and wreaked havoc on the poultry industry overseas. Experts warn the virus would be catastrophic for Australia’s native wildlife, which are thought to be particularly susceptible.
The spread of H5N1 in the subAntarctic has been described as a “game changer” in risking the onset of an Australian outbreak. Thousands of Southern Ocean seals, penguins and other birds are dying from the virus and pelagic seabirds are being infected after feeding on the carcasses.
These pelagic seabirds, including albatrosses, petrels, skuas, petrels and potentially penguins, spend most of their life on the open ocean and fly tens of thousands of kilometres at a time.
It is thought seabirds could have spread virus around the Southern Ocean, starting from South America to the sub-Antarctic South Georgia island. From there it was flown 5000 kilometres across the Southern Ocean to Crozet and Kerguelen Islands, then more than 400 kilometres to Heard Island in Australian remote territory.
At least two infected seabirds have made the 4000-kilometre journey from Heard Island to southwest Western Australia. Another concern is the potential for the virus to make another 4000-kilometre journey to Macquarie Island, which is 1,500 kilometres south-east of Tasmania and about 2,500 kilometres south-southeast of Adelaide.
Last said it is common to see pelagic birds seek out the shore when they are sick like from a bird flu infection or tired after being blown about by a storm. He called on the public to keep an eye out for infected birds and notify authorities.
“An extra level of vigilance is encouraged in people who are enjoying the coastline whether they’re out walking, birdwatching or whatever it might be.”
There is no evidence of widespread fatalities yet to indicate an outbreak in Australia.
“We’ve always known we could not stop it because it would arrive by migratory birds,” said Agriculture Minister Julie Collins, who is responsible for biosecurity. “We’re still in the investigation stage. We’re still determining whether or not this is widespread in Australian wildlife.”
The risk to human health is considered low and there is no evidence of human-to-human transmission.
Invasive Species Council policy director Carol Booth said state and federal governments had made significant progress in their preparations for an outbreak of the H5N1 virus.
The Albanese government committed $113 million and preparation work includes mobilising teams of hundreds to observe and test migratory birds, developing plans to dispose of potentially thousands of infected animals in landfill, including creating quarantine zones, identifying most-at-risk species and strategies to protect critical habitat for the survivors of an outbreak.
However, Booth said biosecurity budgets are always tight and staff are stretched, warning that an outbreak could stretch response teams beyond capacity.
“It’s something we’re very concerned about, that there are multiple outbreaks across poultry and wildlife, that it will really stretch the capacity of our biosecurity and environmental agencies,” Booth said.
Australia recently copped an outbreak of H7 bird flu, a relatively mild strain of the virus that does not pose a major threat to wildlife.
“We have seen with previous bird flu outbreaks that have occurred only in poultry that it required enormous resources, particularly when some states and territories have cut biosecurity staff,” Booth said.
“They might find themselves really floundering to deal with multiple outbreaks.”
People should not touch a suspected infected bird but instead record their location and call 1800 675 888. Signs of bird flu include sudden death or difficulty breathing, standing, walking or flying.
Mike Foley is the climate and energy correspondent for The Age and The Sydney Morning Herald.Connect via email.
