February 28, 2024
The illness has been confirmed in two brown skuas (Stercorarius antarcticus).
Image credit score: shutterstock
It’s the information conservationists have been anticipating, however dreading. The avian influenza H5N1 virus has reached mainland Antarctica.
The extremely contagious and lethal H5N1 pressure of avian influenza (LINK) has not solely killed hundreds of thousands of birds around the globe, however has jumped to mammals. Thousands of deaths have been recorded globally, together with a mass mortality event of elephant and fur seals throughout the illness’s recent unfold throughout South America.
Scientists tracked its path because it moved down the west coast of South America, reaching Antarctica’s subantarctic islands in October final 12 months.
Now, it has formally reached mainland Antarctica. The illness has been confirmed in two brown skuas (Stercorarius antarcticus) – also referred to as Antarctic skuas – on the western tip of the Antarctic Peninsula.
Argentinian researchers discovered and picked up the 2 deceased birds in early February, earlier than handing them over to scientists at Spain’s Severo Ochoa Molecular Biology Center of the Higher Council for Scientific Research (CSIC) for testing.
This week the Spanish authorities launched an announcement, asserting that, certainly, the 2 skuas have been contaminated with the illness.
“The presence of the virus, confirmed on February 24, has been found in samples of two dead skuas, which were found by Argentine scientists near the Primavera Antarctic base,” the assertion reads.
“Analysis has conclusively proven that the birds have been contaminated with the H5 subtype of avian influenza, and that at the very least one of many lifeless birds contained the extremely pathogenic avian influenza virus. These analyses consisted of particular PCRs for the influenza virus and the H5 subtype, adopted by sequencing of the protease chopping area, which defines with 100 per cent certainty the presence of the Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza virus.
“The virus has recently been described in the subantarctic islands, but to date, although significant deaths of some birds had been reported in the Antarctic territory, no country had demonstrated the presence of said virus in Antarctic territory.”
‘Absolutely terrifying’
The affirmation is a realisation of the Antarctic scientific group’s worst fears, a lot of whom relayed these issues to AUSTRALIAN GEOGRAPHIC late final 12 months.
“Bird flu is absolutely terrifying because it’s so deadly and it doesn’t just affect birds,” mentioned
Professor Dana Bergstrom, the previous lead of Biodiversity Conservation with the Australian Antarctic Division (AAD).
AAD seabird ecologist Dr Louise Emmerson echoed this, including the seabird analysis group was anticipating a large lack of life amongst Antarctica’s wildlife when the illness inevitably reached mainland colonies.
“[We are all] feeling like an existential crisis is bearing down on us and our study ecosystems,” mentioned Louise. “We’re all incredibly attached to our study species, and it feels horrendous that there’s very little we can do, apart from monitor the impacts, avoid spreading it [bird flu] further, and maintain the resilience of the wildlife through other management actions.”
Emily Grilly, WWF-Australia’s Antarctic conservation supervisor, predicted, “I think we’re going to see some haunting images… And it’s the last thing that Antarctic wildlife needs right now, when it’s trying to adapt to this changing climate.”
Related: Antarctica: a continent in disaster
