On the 20th, the Australian government confirmed that a highly pathogenic H5N1 avian influenza virus was detected in a wild bird found in Western Australia.
This is the first confirmed detection of a highly pathogenic H5 avian influenza virus on mainland Australia.
At a press conference held in Canberra, Australia's Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry, Murray Watt, stated that test results from the Australian Centre for Disease Control showed that a brown skua found recently in a national park in Western Australia died from an H5N1 virus infection. In the same area, a giant petrel was also found with a suspected positive test result for the H5N1 avian influenza virus.
Murray Watt said that the Australian government has learned from the experiences of other countries in coping with the outbreak and has made preparations in advance.
According to local media reports, mainland Australia was previously the only region where the highly pathogenic H5 avian influenza virus had not been found. However, given the spread of H5N1 highly pathogenic avian influenza virus in many parts of the world in recent years, the Australian government began relevant epidemic prevention preparations in advance. Authorities are expected to confirm within days whether the virus has already spread among Australia's wild bird population.