<
https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2026/jun/24/h5n1-bird-flu-australia-native-bird-mammal-species-at-risk>
"More than 150 of Australia’s native and unique bird species have been assessed
as being at “very high risk” of extinction or major decline if they catch the
deadly H5N1 bird flu strain, with Western Australia’s celebrated black swans
among the most susceptible.
The federal government analysis of Australia’s 800 different birds and 350
mammals reflects the high level of concern among experts about the arrival of
the H5N1 strain, which has killed millions of birds and mammals around the
world.
Australia was the only continent free of the contagious strain until tests
confirmed a brown skua and a giant petrel – found sick a few kilometres from
each other on the Western Australian coastline near Esperance – both had the
strain.
On Tuesday, WA authorities said no new cases had been found and there was no
evidence the virus had spread into other wild populations.
State and federal governments have been preparing for the likely arrival of the
disease for several years, including the development of 100 response plans for
species and habitats and a risk analysis for Australian species.
A federal environment department spokesperson said: “Many of our birds and
mammals are not found anywhere else in the world, making the impacts of H5 bird
flu difficult to predict.”
There were more than 150 bird species unique to Australia “considered at very
high risk” under the risk analysis, the spokesperson said.
They included the red goshawk, fairy tern, plains-wanderer, shy albatross,
black swan and western hooded plover.
Migratory species like the short-tailed shearwater – famed for its 15,000km
migration from the Arctic Circle to Australia – were also at very high risk.
At a high risk were the swift parrot and orange-bellied parrot, both critically
endangered in Australia.
Chris Purnell, the wetland and migratory shorebird program manager at BirdLife
Australia, advised on the analysis and said it had considered both the risk of
extinction at a species level or at a regional population level.
“For these endemic birds, there’s no avenue for repopulation from outside
Australia. If they are gone, then they are gone.”"
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
