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Remarkably, researchers studying the wildlife on Heard Island noted that, unlike other regions, there was no significant increase in mortality rates among the island’s penguins and seabirds. This discovery is noteworthy amidst global concerns about wildlife health.
Heard Island, situated over 4,000 kilometers southwest of Perth in the Southern Ocean, remains a remote and challenging location for scientific study. Its isolated position offers a unique opportunity to observe wildlife without the interference of human activity.
In a bid to understand the island’s ecological dynamics better, scientists have collected various samples. These will be thoroughly tested upon their return to Australia, expected in November. This testing aims to uncover any underlying health issues affecting the island’s fauna.
Globally, there has been a worrying trend of disease outbreaks among both wild and domestic animals. Such outbreaks have led to the deaths of millions of farmed and wild birds worldwide. The situation on Heard Island, therefore, offers a contrasting and potentially insightful case for researchers aiming to combat these alarming trends.
Julie McInnes, a wildlife ecologist with the Australian Antarctic Division who is on board the RSV Nuyina ship in the Southern Ocean, said one of the trip’s objectives was to look for signs of H5 bird flu in seabirds and seals.
The majority of mortalities were detected in elephant seal pups and in a small number of adults on the island’s south-east coast, she said.
What does this mean for Australia?
“The possible presence of avian flu on Heard Island just reflects that infections can spread quite easily over continents”, he told SBS News.
Cattle were added to the list of animals infected by the virus last year, with the virus spreading across farms in multiple US states.
Scientists are concerned H5N1 has spread among elephant seals on Heard Island. Source: Getty / Anadolu
It’s a prompt for Australia to ensure “our surveillance remains very vigilant”, Senanayake said.
She encouraged people to visit birdflu.gov.au and report any mass bird deaths, reminding people not to touch the animals.
Concerns for wildlife
“We’d also probably expect to see impacts in some of the seabird populations,” she said.
“If it gets here, we will see [an] impact on wildlife, and there’s very little that can be done about that,” Younger said.
Collins said funding had been distributed to wildlife organisations to conduct more surveillance as part of the government’s preparations.
What’s the risk to humans?
The virus does not seem to easily infect humans or spread from person to person, according to the World Health Organization.
