The bird flu crisis has been a harrowing spectacle to witness, with thousands of seabirds succumbing to the deadly H5N1 virus across Europe and now, the specter of the same fate looms over Australia's wild flocks. The graceful sandwich terns, known for their spectacular plunging dives into the ocean, have been particularly hard-hit, with tens of thousands dying across Europe in 2022. The effects of the virus on the brain cause the terns to flounder on the ground, craning and straining their necks in a suffering behavior known as star-gazing. This is a sight that Prof James Pearce-Higgins, the director of science at the British Trust for Ornithology, describes as 'a real sense of a colony collapse as you watched this transfer of the virus between birds.'
The crisis has not only affected seabirds but has also had a devastating impact on seals and sea lions, with tens of thousands dying in outbreaks in South America and Australia's subantarctic islands. The virus can cause debilitating conditions for these marine mammals, with severe neurological and respiratory symptoms. Dr Saia Bartes, an Argentinian marine biologist, describes the impact on sea lions in South America as 'devastating,' with a third of the population lost in north Patagonia.
The potential threat to Australia's wildlife is a cause for grave concern. Almost 400 species of birds and mammals are at 'high risk' or worse if they catch the disease, according to a federal government analysis. Prof John Woinarski of Charles Darwin University expects the disease to have spread across the continent within a year, and Prof Pearce-Higgins agrees that large mortalities are expected, putting some species at risk.
The risk of the virus causing planet-wide extinctions is higher now that every continent is affected. The virus has already swept over every other continent, killing millions of birds