Australia Races to Shield Little Penguins From H5N1 Bird Flu
Wildlife teams are targeting about 5,000 birds with a two-dose H5N1 vaccine after one penguin died and the virus spread in wild birds.
- On Sunday, authorities confirmed Australia's first mammal death from H5 bird flu after a long-nosed fur seal was found dead at Beachport in South Australia, around 300 kilometres south of Adelaide.
- Federal Agriculture Minister Julie Collins warned that more casualties are inevitable as the virus spreads through the natural environment; the seal likely contracted the strain due to its close proximity to infected birds like crested terns.
- Phillip Island Nature Parks teams have vaccinated more than 1,000 little penguins so far, with authorities aiming to protect 5,000 birds in what represents a world-leading vaccination effort to safeguard the colony.
- Describing the project as unprecedented, Phillip Island Nature Parks CEO Catherine Basterfield noted it was "the first time that anyone around the world has attempted something like this at this scale," citing the difficulty of handling penguins.
- While Environment Minister Murray Watt claims government investment has made wildlife "more resilient," critics continue to call for an ignored $200 million bird flu funding package to address the spreading crisis.
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Authorities fear the spread of H5N1 avian influenza virus in the colonies of these wild birds
Australia's Daring Plan to Hand-Vaccinate 5,000 Wild Penguins
The post Australia’s Daring Plan to Hand-Vaccinate 5,000 Wild Penguins appeared first on A-Z Animals.The world’s smallest penguin is under a big threat. For little penguins, Eudyptula minor, who call Phillip Island off the southeast coast of Australia home, an invasion of highly contagious bird flu is putting their colonies in danger. Australia is fighting back to protect the small birds. Wildlife officials plan to catch and vaccinate more than …
Small feet, big rescue. In Australia, authorities are doing everything they can to get the world's smallest penguin vaccinated.
The largest vaccination program for wild birds takes place in the Philip Island of Australia, one of the favorite destinations for tourists who want to see birds in the wild. About 1,000 penguins have already received two doses of avian influenza vaccine, and another 4,000 will also be vaccinated, writes The ...
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