HEALTHTHE GUARDIAN WORLD
More than 13,000 seal pups die on remote Australian island amid bird flu outbreak
More than 13,000 southern elephant seal pups have died on Australia's subantarctic Heard Island due to the spread of the H5N1 bird flu. Testing confirmed the virus's presence among penguins, seals, and petrels on the island, with government scientists observing the mass mortality through drone and ground surveys in October 2025 and January 2026.
Mentioned
Related Signal
Adjacent reporting
- Human activity linked to 4 of 29 cetacean deaths in Hong Kong waters: report
- Third Briton feared to have hantavirus is in rat-infested settlement known as 'world's most remote inhabited island' with just 250 people
- Penguin 'Toxicologists' Find PFAS Chemicals in Remote Patagonia
- Pictured: Birdwatcher killed by hantavirus on ship - as official says the Dutchman and wife DIDN'T catch rat virus from landfill site with NEW location under spotlight
- Ranching Could Soon Come To An End On Moloka‘i. Paniolo Blame TB Testing
- Pictured: Birdwatcher killed by hantavirus on ship - as official says the Dutchman and wife DIDN'T catch rat virus from landfill site with NEW location under spotlight