Australia confirms 1st mainland case of H5N1 bird flu
Posted on: Jun 20, 2026 07:18 IST | Posted by: Cbc
commonwealth of australia testament do everything it tin to curb bit the overspread of H5N1 bird flu, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said Saturday, after the first mainland infection was confirmed in a seabird a day after the virus was detected in a remote region of Western Australia.
Until now, Australia had been the only continent without a confirmed mainland case, although the virus was detected in late 2025 on the sub-Antarctic territory of Heard Island, about 4,100 kilometres from continental Australia.
"This is concerning," Albanese told reporters in Sydney, adding that his government would do "whatever we can to restrict any spread."
Testing had confirmed that the bird, found near Esperance, a town about 570 kilometres southeast of Perth, the capital of Western Australia, had the deadly strain, the government said.
Human infections remain rare, although highly pathogenic avian influenza has led to the culling of hundreds of millions of birds in recent years, disrupting food supplies and driving up prices.
The virus had not yet been detected in Australia's poultry or agricultural systems, Agriculture Minister Julie Collins said, though a giant petrel, another sick bird found in the same area, also tested positive.
"There's no evidence of any mass mortalities and there's no evidence that it's in our poultry or agriculture system at this stage," she said in televised remarks from the capital, Canberra.
In its efforts to tackle bird flu, Australia has tightened biosecurity measures at farms, testing shorebirds for disease, vaccinated vulnerable species and run emergency response exercises.
On Friday, authorities said the migratory brown skua, found in Western Australia's Cape Le Grand National Park, had tested positive for the disease and they were awaiting confirmation.
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