Australia Confirms Its First H5 Bird Flu Case in a Mammal, a Fur Seal in South Australia

Australia confirmed its first H5 bird flu infection in a mammal after laboratory testing found the virus in a long-nosed fur seal discovered dead at Beachport, South Australia. The animal was reported on August 19 and state testing was inconclusive before the CSIRO's Australian Centre for Disease Preparedness confirmed the result. Authorities said the case was not linked to other sick or dead marine mammals, probably followed exposure to infected wild birds or their environment, and did not change the low assessed risk to human health; no infections had been found in poultry or livestock.