Bird flu: No new cases confirmed in NZ, MPI fields surge in public notifications
No new cases of bird flu have been detected in New Zealand since two birds tested positive for the highly infectious virus in the lower North Island.
But the Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI) says it’s fielding a large number of reports about dead or sick birds since the country’s first-ever infections were confirmed and will investigate each to identify further potential cases.
MPI noted the number of reports doesn’t indicate whether the birds had tested positive, and some would have been made more than once.
It comes as officials in New South Wales confirmed that the beached body of a baby humpback whale will be undergoing testing for the H5N1 strain of avian influenza, which has spread around the world in numerous species and reached Oceania just months ago.
Organisation for the Rescue and Research of Cetaceans in Australia (ORRCA) president Ashley Ryan said the testing formed part of standard biosecurity procedures, which have been agreed upon for monitoring and surveilling the virus.
The reasons behind the male calf’s stranding and death were still being determined, but there have not been any recorded cases of the whale species contracting H5N1 before.
“There are many reasons why whales can become stranded, including illness, injury, separation from their mother, navigational challenges or other natural factors,” Ryan said.
“It is too early to determine what led to this particular incident.”
In an update this morning, MPI’s chief veterinary officer Dr Mary van Andel said there had been no further detections since Friday, including in commercial poultry farms.
Authorities hadn’t found any evidence of widespread transmission or mass mortality affecting wildlife either.
New Zealand’s first case was detected in a brown skua found on Wellington’s Petone Beach on Wednesday, with a second detection in a native kāhu, or swamp harrier, in the Wairarapa announced days later.
“We have staff on the ground over the weekend carrying out checks in some areas of Wellington’s south coast and Wairarapa,” van Andel said.
“We continue to have a strong response from the public about unwell or dead birds they have seen, and we consider every notification and triage any suspected cases of avian influenza.”
Van Andel urged people not to touch or move the birds they encounter.
“If you see three or more sick or dead wild birds in a group, report it immediately to the exotic pest and disease hotline on 0800 80 99 66 from anywhere in New Zealand or online at report.mpi.govt.nz."
The H5N1 strain (clade 2.3.4.4b) was confirmed in Australia last month, placing authorities on either side of the Tasman on high alert.
Distinguished Professor Nigel French and Professor Jemma Geoghegan, of Massey University, warned of the risks from the disease’s impending arrival in April, noting that Aotearoa’s wildlife is isolated and therefore vulnerable due to little previous exposure.
“The current H5N1 strain is unprecedented in both scale and scope,” they said.
“What was once largely a poultry disease causing occasional severe illness in humans is now a multi-species threat, affecting wild birds, mammals and increasingly, entire ecosystems.”
French, an infectious disease epidemiologist, and Geoghegan, an evolutionary virologist, said the virus’ impact on marine mammals had been particularly severe.
“Recent deaths of northern elephant seals in critical breeding colonies in California are concerning, but the impact of the virus on southern elephant seals threatens the viability of populations in South America and the sub-Antarctic,” they said.
“Southern elephant seals and pakake, the New Zealand sea lion, share similar habitats, including beaches in New Zealand’s South Island.
“An outbreak of H5N1 in breeding colonies in the sub-Antarctic and populations in Otago and Rakiura could set back recent conservation efforts.”
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