The first wave of bird flu is the worst: what Australia can learn from overseas
The rest of the world has already had to grapple with bird flu – and there are lessons for Australia.
The current outbreak of H5N1 bird flu began in 2020 and has been spreading widely across Europe and the Americas, with devastating effects on wildlife. Australia, along with New Zealand, remained free from this virus until now. The first wave of bird flu tends to be the worst, causing mass deaths in many populations and individuals.
However, not all species are equally affected. In the first wave, adult sandwich terns in western Europe died in droves, while their 2023 chicks had a far better survival rate. The overall numbers of sandwich terns only fell modestly, but the species is projected to take almost 20 years to recover to its pre-outbreak level. Some Australian birds and mammals are more vulnerable to the virus due to their unique species and lack of crucial immune defences.
Written by urgent.news from The Conversation AU's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
