Avian influenza viruses have infected bird populations around the globe long before humans were aware of them in the 19th Century. In 2021, a new strand of bird flu known as Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (H5N1) infected many birds across most of the world. Currently the virus has still not reached Australia, but the threat still looms large especially amongst seabirds.

4ZZZ's Toni Pankaluic spoke with Simon Gorta, a conservation ecologist and PHD candidate from the University of New South Wales Sydney to discuss this Avian Influenza strand, seabirds in general and particularly the species involved in the spread.

For a deep dive...

To keep up with the latest information on the latest Avian influenza outbreak visit Wildlife Health Australia. Alternatively the state and federal governments each feature useful information on the virus.  

Check out this cool guide to help you identify some of Australia's seabird species.