https://www.abc.net.au/news/2026-06-19/h5-bird-flu-suspected-in-western-australia/106819600

Suspected detection of H5 strain of bird flu in WA, which would be first in Australia

Another bird, a giant petrel, was also being tested.

It has now returned a suspected positive result for the H5 influenza.

Front page story in today's The West Australian.

I'm surprised that it even gets a mention in the media.

Oh, wait - H5N1 has the potential to wreak havoc on the economy with infected poultry, etc.

Doesn't matter if it mutates into a deadly human to human variant that spreads as easily as the flu or Covid.

In fact, they've made sure to point out that there is "low risk to humans" from this bird flu - and as soon as I see something like that these days I know it is definitely time to start worrying.

Speaking of worrying - I can't seem to find any more news lately about the gradual spread of Ebola worldwide. Funny about that.

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Considering mammals : cats, dogs, cows, through to mice and rats can be infected and have a high death rate, such as 75% death rate with cats, they are definitely understating risk for humans.

Ai_Took_Our_Jobs wrote on Jun 20^th, 2026 at 2:11pm:

Considering mammals : cats, dogs, cows, through to mice and rats can be infected and have a high death rate, such as 75% death rate with cats, they are definitely understating risk for humans.

And mammals differ in what they can and can't catch, what they can and can't be vaccinated against. You ascribe to the LNT model, don't you? ::)

I don't like to say it but I'll make the prediction now - there will be no stopping this and we're screwed.

Dead birds wash up on WA coastline as expert warns of black swan 'wipe-out' from bird flu


Quote:

At least 16 dead birds have been reported to authorities after washing up on southern WA beaches, a day after Australia's first case of H5 avian flu was confirmed in a migratory sea bird. Experts are warning that number could be the tip of the iceberg.

I guess we'll just have to 'live with the virus' (bird flu) just like we've had to live (and die) with Covid for the past 4 or 5 years.

Carl D wrote on Jun 22^nd, 2026 at 7:11am:

I don't like to say it but I'll make the prediction now - there will be no stopping this and we're screwed. Dead birds wash up on WA coastline as expert warns of black swan 'wipe-out' from bird flu Quote: At least 16 dead birds have been reported to authorities after washing up on southern WA beaches, a day after Australia's first case of H5 avian flu was confirmed in a migratory sea bird. Experts are warning that number could be the tip of the iceberg. I guess we'll just have to 'live with the virus' (bird flu) just like we've had to live (and die) with Covid for the past 4 or 5 years.

ABC 24 news said this new virus is unlikely to travel easily between humans.

Bobby. wrote on Jun 22^nd, 2026 at 8:04am:

ABC 24 news said this new virus is unlikely to travel easily between humans.

We heard the same thing about SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19) six and a half years ago.

And, after that, whenever I see or hear "don't worry" from the media or politicians (or the World "Health" Organization) these days I know it is definitely time to start worrying.

Bobby. wrote on Jun 22^nd, 2026 at 8:04am:

Carl D wrote on Jun 22nd, 2026 at 7:11am: I don't like to say it but I'll make the prediction now - there will be no stopping this and we're screwed. Dead birds wash up on WA coastline as expert warns of black swan 'wipe-out' from bird flu Quote: At least 16 dead birds have been reported to authorities after washing up on southern WA beaches, a day after Australia's first case of H5 avian flu was confirmed in a migratory sea bird. Experts are warning that number could be the tip of the iceberg. I guess we'll just have to 'live with the virus' (bird flu) just like we've had to live (and die) with Covid for the past 4 or 5 years. ABC 24 news said this new virus is unlikely to travel easily between humans.

It has the potential of wiping out our black swan population.

Carl D wrote on Jun 22^nd, 2026 at 8:11am:

Bobby. wrote on Jun 22nd, 2026 at 8:04am: ABC 24 news said this new virus is unlikely to travel easily between humans. We heard the same thing about SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19) six and a half years ago. And, after that, whenever I see or hear "don't worry" from the media or politicians (or the World "Health" Organization) these days I know it is definitely time to start worrying.

Fear not for the Lord is with you.

Carl D wrote on Jun 22^nd, 2026 at 8:11am:

Bobby. wrote on Jun 22nd, 2026 at 8:04am: ABC 24 news said this new virus is unlikely to travel easily between humans. We heard the same thing about SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19) six and a half years ago. And, after that, whenever I see or hear "don't worry" from the media or politicians (or the World "Health" Organization) these days I know it is definitely time to start worrying.

They will slaughter species after species so to stop those creatures from building up natural immunity, in the hope of minimising the mutating of the virus to being more lethal to humans.

Big chance of the global food chain crash happening a lot faster now.

Ai_Took_Our_Jobs wrote on Jun 22^nd, 2026 at 2:48pm:

They will slaughter species after species so to stop those creatures from building up natural immunity, in the hope of minimising the mutating of the virus to being more lethal to humans.

Exactly who are "they"?

After an 11-month legal standoff, the Canadian government on 8 November culled a flock of farm-raised ostriches that had survived an outbreak of the highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) virus H5N1.

Despite appeals to save the birds—coming from an unusual coalition that included U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and protesters who criticized government overreach during the COVID-19 pandemic—Canada’s Supreme Court on 6 November dismissed an appeal from the birds’ owners to stay their execution. The Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) then corralled all 314 remaining ostriches behind hay bales and had sharpshooters kill them at Universal Ostrich Farms. “The disposal followed all biosecurity and biocontainment protocols to mitigate the risk of spreading HPAI,” a CFIA statement says.

Ostriches are considered poultry, an industry CFIA regulates. The agency discovered H5N1 in the flock after receiving an anonymous tip in December 2024 that the farm had sick birds. Canadian regulations require the culling of an entire flock if even a single member is infected with HPAI, a policy called “stamping out” that, as CFIA notes, is meant to protect animals, humans, and Canada’s international poultry trade. But the farmers, who hoped sell antibodies from the ostriches’ eggs as health and beauty products, objected.


CFIA rejected their argument that the surviving ostriches were immune to H5N1, and, for safety reasons, would not allow testing of the birds for the virus. Protesters set up camp outside the farm, attracting international media attention.

Tarps cover the ground inside a holding pen
Tarps covered the makeshift pen where ostriches were held before a cull took place on 8 November.

Brenna Owen/The Canadian Press via AP

https://www.science.org/content/article/canadian-government-kills-ostriches-afflicted-h5n1-despite-appeal-rfk-jr

Ah, the Canadians.  8-)

Millions of birds have been culled globally (over 160 million in the United States alone and 140 million previously).

Despite mass culling efforts, the virus has become entrenched in wild bird populations and occasionally spills over into mammalian species (such as dairy cows and domestic pets).

Because the culling strategy has proven difficult to sustain, global agricultural agencies are reevaluating their approaches.


Australia could try a different path. Don't cull. Allow natural immunity to develop.

Ai_Took_Our_Jobs wrote on Jun 22^nd, 2026 at 3:30pm:

Australia could try a different path. Don't cull. Allow natural immunity to develop.

So perhaps not in Oz. ::)

greggerypeccary wrote on Jun 22^nd, 2026 at 9:56am:

It has the potential of wiping out our black swan population.

Letter in today's The West Australian.

Yes, that is an excellent idea. And, it would be money well spent by the WA Government instead of spending it on racetracks, ferries and subsidised airfares for an Italian football festival which is already being "financially underpinned" by WA taxpayers.

(Someone was asking the other day about having subsidised airfares for WA football fans flying to Melbourne if the Dockers make the Grand Final. Yeah, I'd like to see that).  ::)

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Carl D wrote on Jun 23^rd, 2026 at 3:39pm:

greggerypeccary wrote on Jun 22nd, 2026 at 9:56am: It has the potential of wiping out our black swan population. Letter in today's The West Australian. Yes, that is an excellent idea. And, it would be money well spent by the WA Government instead of spending it on racetracks, ferries and subsidised airfares for an Italian football festival which is already being "financially underpinned" by WA taxpayers. (Someone was asking the other day about having subsidised airfares for WA football fans flying to Melbourne if the Dockers make the Grand Final. Yeah, I'd like to see that).  ::)

We don't wanna lose our Lake Monger swans   :(