MEDIA RELEASE 25th June 2026 Urgent ac1ons required to build resilience in Tasmania’s bird popula1ons BirdLife Tasmania calls on the Tasmanian government to undertake urgent ac1on to build resilience in bird popula1ons ahead of the arrival of the highly...
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MEDIA RELEASE 25th June 2026 Urgent ac1ons required to build resilience in Tasmania’s bird popula1ons BirdLife Tasmania calls on the Tasmanian government to undertake urgent ac1on to build resilience in bird popula1ons ahead of the arrival of the highly pathogenic bird flu (H5N1). The recent discovery of H5N1 infected seabirds in Western Australia and South Australia has hailed the inevitable outbreak of this destruc1ve disease in Tasmania. Mark Holdsworth, Chair of the BirdLife Tasmania said: “It’s just a maUer of 1me when bird flu arrives on our shores. The infected Brown Skua and Giant-Petrels found in Western Australia and south Australia are both common in Tasmanian waters so we can expect to see these and many other sub- Antarc1c species sick and dying around our coasts.” “The high prevalence of fur-seals and gull species, in par1cular kelp gulls which are also found in sub-Antarc1c islands, around salmon farms is a likely pathway for H5N1 to infect a range of species in Tasmania.
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