A looming wildlife catastrophe: Australia is poorly prepared for possible arrival of deadly H5N1 bird flu this spring.
Large-scale outbreaks of the H5N1 strain of bird flu in the past two years around the world have killed millions of wild birds and tens of thousands of mammals.
H5N1 bird flu has spread to all continents apart from Australia and experts predict it could arrive with the spring migration of shorebirds and seabirds from the northern hemisphere.
A June 2023,government-commissioned risk assessment predicted ‘catastrophic’ impacts for native birds, including possible localised extinctions. Large-scale deaths of sea lions and seals in South America show the virus is also adapting to mammals and can cause catastrophic losses.
A failure to prepare for an outbreak could undo years of investment in threatened species recovery and set Australia back in its trajectory towards biodiversity targets.
We cannot prevent thearrival of H5N1, but we can reduce the impacts – if we prepare. Australia’s poultry industry is well prepared, but we are poorly prepared for wildlife impacts.
Urgently needed are:
- identification and prioritisation of at-risk species and high-value sites;
- development of detailed response plans for these; and
- effective coordination and dissemination of critical information for both preparedness and response activities.
Options to reduce wildlife deaths and prevent extinctions include:
- preventing disturbance of affected wildlife colonies;
- swiftly removing carcasses; and
- vaccination.
So far, only $580,000 has been allocated by the federal government ‘to support early detection and response capability for H5 HPAI in wildlife’ (in addition to funding for surveillance work). This is nowhere near enough to support essential preparedness work in wildlife.
Download our briefing note to learn more. This briefing note has been prepared by the Australian Marine Conservation Society, Invasive Species Council, Biodiversity Council, and the Australian Land Conservation Alliance.
