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🇦🇺 Australia /Health & Science

Vet Recounts Discovery of Australia's First H5 Bird Flu Case in Seabird

From ABC Australia · () English

Translated from English, summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

News Named sources Outcome reported
  • A veterinarian in Western Australia discovered Australia's first known case of the deadly H5 bird flu in a sick seabird.
  • The bird, a subantarctic skua, was found dehydrated and weak on a beach near Esperance.
  • Health officials are advising the public to avoid touching sick or dead birds and to report sightings.

A veterinarian in Western Australia has recounted her unexpected discovery of Australia's first confirmed case of the H5 variant of bird flu. Dr. Toni Howlett stumbled upon a sick seabird on a beach near Esperance last Sunday while walking with a friend.

I established that he was a little bit dehydrated and pretty skinny and thought it would be good to get him into care.

— Toni HowlettDescribing her initial assessment of the sick bird found on the beach.

Dr. Howlett observed the bird, identified as a subantarctic skua, appearing dehydrated and weak. Believing it needed care, she transported it from the beach to a local wildlife carer. At the time, she suspected common issues like botulism affecting marine life, not avian influenza.

We see a fair bit of kind of botulism in our sea life down here, so I thought it was more likely to be that.

— Toni HowlettExplaining her initial thoughts on the bird's condition before avian influenza was suspected.

Following testing, the bird was confirmed to have the highly infectious H5 bird flu. Dr. Howlett expressed surprise, stating that avian influenza had not crossed her mind when she found the bird. She emphasized the importance of public caution, advising people to leave any sick or dead birds undisturbed on the beach and to report them instead of attempting to intervene.

Just leave it on the beach, take a picture, if you're in mobile service you can contact the animal emergency disease hotline.

— Toni HowlettAdvising the public on how to respond if they find sick or dead birds.

Further testing by Dr. Howlett's partner, Dr. Alex Hockton, on another bird, a Giant Petrel, also confirmed a positive result for avian influenza. Dr. Hockton noted that veterinarians have been discussing the potential for an H5 case for about two years, with Esperance being a likely location due to its coastal position. He highlighted the crucial role of community members and wildlife carers in quickly identifying such cases, which helps mitigate the risk of the virus spreading and ensures public safety.

We've always thought Esperance might be a location that could crop up with a first case or one of, and that's been the case in this instance, I think because of our location on the south coast.

— Dr. Alex HocktonDiscussing why Esperance was considered a potential location for the first H5 case.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by ABC Australia in English. Translated, summarized, and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

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