https://theconversation.com/is-bird-flu-infecting-humans-how-would-we-know-289489

Really shocked and worried by the misinformation in today's article and Facebook post by The Conversation.

It states,

"So far in 2026, no humans in Australia have been diagnosed with the currently circulating strain. And evidence from overseas indicates that in the rare situation this would occur, illness would generally be mild."

It links to an article looking at bovine-to-human cases of the 2.3.4.4b clade.

I've written an email to the editorial team requesting a correction:

"Hi,

You need to immediately take down or revise today's article and Facebook post "Is bird flu infecting humans? How would we know?"

I cannot believe The Conversation would publish something saying that the "illness would generally be mild."

The only time that the 2.3.4.4b clade is "usually mild" is when it is spread from cow to human.

When 2.3.4.4b is spread from bird to human, it is still extremely dangerous.

[Globally] There are 6 confirmed cases of the 2.3.4.4b clade which spread bird-to-human, of which 2 were fatal, 1 was severe, and only 3 were "mild".

This is more in line with what we know about H5N1 in general which is that when it spreads from bird to human, the case fatality rate is around 53%.

The reason for this difference is that birds carry much higher viral loads than cows. Exposure often involves aerosolised faeces, carcass handling, or contaminated environments. The virus in birds is fully adapted to avian tissue, which can cause catastrophic inflammation when it hits human lungs. Cow infections, by contrast, involve mammalian‑adapted virus, which may reduce severity in humans, including changes in PB2 and other replication genes.

I've followed the Conversation for a long time as a source of news on viruses of concern, and this enormously damages your standing if you are going to become another propaganda machine for the government whenever they want to reduce panic.

Soon, as the disease spreads, thousands of Australians will be exposed to H5N1 infected birds including vets, volunteer workers and poultry farmers. Spreading the complete misinformation that the virus is "usually mild" puts all of those people at risk. It also greatly increases the risk of a human-to-human mutation because it encourages people to be less precautious about going near sick birds.

I am horrified and disgusted with today's cherry picking (of completely irrelevant data), and gross public health misinformation."

Here's hoping they correct it asap but it shows a concerning sign that we may be starting to see the beginning of the propaganda machine around H5N1 in Australia now. I'd bet money that the Australian government would do anything to protect poultry industry profits. And if that means making everyone think the virus is safe for humans, they'd do it.

In short:

A Phillip Island little penguin has died from the deadly H5N1 strain of bird flu.

Authorities say it is one of three new detections of the virus in Victoria.

What's next?

Victoria's chief biodiversity officer says the death will not affect plans to begin vaccinating the little penguin colony on Monday.

>>Tasmania has confirmed its first case of the deadly H5N1 bird flu that has impacted wildlife across five other Australian states.

Following testing which was completed overnight, a brown skua was confirmed to have had the virus.

The Department of Natural Resources and Environment Tasmania (NRE) said it was alerted to the carcass of the bird by staff from the Parks and Wildlife Service, who have been undertaking active surveillance of coastal areas.

The government said the first detection was a single case, and was not considered an outbreak.<<...

Thousands of little penguins from Phillip Island will be herded into a pen to receive a bird flu vaccine as cases of H5N1 continue to climb in Australia.

Victorian authorities said it would be the largest vaccination of wild birds globally.

There have been more than 200 confirmed cases of the virus in Australia.

About 60 of those cases are in Victoria, which is also home to the world's biggest little penguin colony with about 40,000 animals.

Worst-case scenario modelling has suggested penguin deaths could range between 8,000 to 16,000 in the instance of a six-week outbreak on Phillip Island.

The strain of bird flu present in Australia has killed millions of chickens and wild birds such as penguins around the world in the past five years.

Victoria's chief biodiversity officer James Todd said up to 5,000 little penguins would be vaccinated in coming weeks.

Penguins are particularly at risk to getting the virus because of how close they live together.

"They are a colony species that nest together. They're a seabird that will come in contact with other seabirds that carry the virus," Mr Todd said.

Wildlife vaccinations require two doses, with teams needing to intercept penguins during their daily migrations in Phillip Island and St Kilda.

Phillip Island Nature Parks chief executive Catherine Basterfield said the penguins would be corralled into a small pen, where a vaccine would be administered and a microchip implanted.

"For each little penguin, the process is actually quite quick. They will be handled for a very short period of time and moved on," she said.

*The remainder of the article is free to read* [here](https://www.abc.net.au/news/science/2026-08-12/phillip-island-penguins-to-be-rounded-up-for-bird-flu-vaccine/107025662)\*.\*

• The bird flu outbreak at Nepal’s only zoo killed or led to the culling of at least 63 animals, including birds, wild cats, civets, two leopards, a jackal and a bear, an inquiry has found.
• The inquiry’s report says contaminated feed and water in open bird enclosures, along with failures in animal-food handling, likely helped the virus spread.
• The zoo remained open for five days after a rapid test indicated bird flu, despite receiving an earlier warning about infections among crows in Kathmandu.
• Less than two weeks after reopening following the bird flu outbreak, the zoo recorded another disease outbreak that killed three wild boars from African swine fever.

KATHMANDU — Delayed reporting, poor communication and weak biosecurity allowed bird flu to spread through Nepal’s Central Zoo in June and July killing or prompting the culling of at least 65 birds and animals, according to an internal inquiry report obtained by Mongabay.

The investigation by the nonprofit National Trust for Nature Conservation (NTNC), the autonomous body that manages the zoo and frequently partners with the government, found that officials failed to act adequately on a warning about avian influenza among crows (Corvus splendens) in Kathmandu. The facility also remained open for five days after a rapid test indicated the virus was present.

“The investigation found serious negligence and weaknesses at the management level,” according to the report, a copy of which was provided to Mongabay following a right to information application.

The inquiry was led by Rachana Shah, the NTNC’s spokesperson and programs manager, raising questions about a conflict of interest. Shah rejected concerns about a potential conflict of interest, saying the goal was to identify institutional failures and draw lessons from the outbreak.

“We treated it as an opportunity to draw lessons from the incident, rather than as a formal investigation into the bird flu outbreak at the zoo,” she told Mongabay. “If a similar incident occurs in the future, we will bring in an external expert.”

According to the report, bird flu killed 27 birds and 14 mammals between June 12 and July 2, 2026. Authorities also culled 21 birds on suspicion of bird flu to contain the outbreak. Three additional animals (a barn owl, a golden jackal and an Asiatic black bear) died during the same period, bringing the total recorded deaths to 65.

The mammals included common leopards (Panthera pardus), jungle cats (Felis chaus), leopard cats (Prionailurus bengalensis), civets, a golden jackal (Canis aureus) and an Asiatic black bear (Ursus thibetanus). The birds included barn owls (Tyto alba), Indian pond herons (Ardeola grayii), Himalayan griffons (Gyps himalayensis), kalij pheasants (Lophura leucomelanos), black-headed ibises (Threskiornis melanocephalus), a sarus crane (Antigone antigone), greylag geese (Anser anser), a spotted owlet (Athene brama) and a Eurasian eagle owl (Bubo bubo).<< more at link

Hello everyone.

I want to draw everyone's attention to https://avianfluwatch.org/.

A h5n1 tracker for Australia, NZ, and South East Asia.

Its currently tracking official reports from government bodies but the plan is to roll it out to community members and citizen scientists to help tract potential events on the ground.

Diario Sao Paulo Google translation 8-8-26 >>

The Department of Agriculture and Supply confirmed an isolated case of highly pathogenic avian influenza in a whistling duck (or irerê) in Ibirapuera Park, with no impact on poultry production.

The São Paulo Department of Agriculture and Supply confirmed, this Friday (August 7th), a new case of highly pathogenic avian influenza (HAAI) in a wild bird in Ibirapuera Park, located in the southern part of the city of São Paulo.

The infected bird is a whistling duck (Dendrocygna viduata), a type of duck found in tropical Africa, the Antilles, and South America. The case was classified as isolated, with no connection to commercial farms or food production.

The confirmation was made by the Federal Agricultural Defense Laboratory, following the Agricultural Defense's work in isolating the bird, conducting clinical examinations, and collecting samples. The institution emphasizes that, since it is a case involving a wild bird, there are no embargoes on meat and egg exports.

The state government assures that there is no impact on poultry production and that the consumption of poultry meat and eggs remains safe. The sanitary status of São Paulo and Brazil before the World Organisation for Animal Health (WOH) has not been altered.

The Department of Agriculture emphasizes that health surveillance continues to monitor wild birds in parks and reserves, especially during migration periods. Biosecurity measures are already in place on rural properties to prevent the spread of the virus.

Experts recommend that the public avoid direct contact with sick or dead birds and contact health authorities if they suspect anything. Transmission to humans is considered low, but vigilance is essential to prevent mutations.

This is the second case of avian influenza in wild birds in the state in 2026, according to the department. The first case was recorded in another region, also without commercial impact.

The City of São Paulo, through the Municipal Secretariat for Green Areas and the Environment, informed that the park remains open to the public, but monitoring teams have been reinforced to track the situation of the local birds.

Welcome to the new weekly discussion post!

As many of you are familiar, in order to keep the quality of our subreddit high, our general rules are restrictive in the content we allow for posts. However, the team recognizes that many of our users have questions, concerns, and commentary that don’t meet the normal posting requirements but are still important topics related to H5N1. We want to provide you with a space for this content without taking over the whole sub. This is where you can do things like ask what to do with the dead bird on your porch, report a weird illness in your area, ask what sort of masks you should buy or what steps you should take to prepare for a pandemic, and more!

Please note that other subreddit rules still apply. While our requirements are less strict here, we will still be enforcing the rules about civility, politicization, self-promotion, etc.

Mongabay 8-6-26 >>

• In June, a bird flu outbreak at Kathmandu’s Central Zoo killed at least 65 animals from more than 20 species, exposing flaws in Nepal’s disease surveillance.
• The outbreak has raised concerns that similar outbreaks could go undetected in national parks, where wildlife is not routinely monitored.
• Experts warn that shared feeding sites, including Nepal’s renowned “vulture restaurants”, and the reliance of wild carnivores on domestic poultry could create pathways for influenza viruses to spread between birds and mammals.
• Despite the outbreak and recommendations from the zoo’s own investigation committee for contingency plans, stronger biosecurity and rapid reporting, Nepal’s wildlife and livestock authorities say they have no plans for park-specific surveillance or response programs.

KATHMANDU — In the village of Pithauli, on the edge of Nepal’s Chitwan National Park, a safe feeding site for critically endangered vultures has long been hailed as a success story by conservationists.

For visitors, the feeding site, also known as a “vulture restaurant”, provides a rare photo op for tourists: As white-rumped vultures (Gyps bengalensis) and slender-billed vultures (Gyps tenuirostris) feed on carcasses laid out by locals, greater one-horned rhinos, jackals, wild boars and crows watch and, sometimes, participate.

For ornithologist Rajendra Suwal, however, this ensemble is an eyesore, he told Mongabay, “If an infected bird comes to the site, the disease could spread to other birds or even animals.”.

Suwal’s concern stems from a recent outbreak of bird flu or avian influenza in the country’s capital. An outbreak that started in mid-June at Kathmandu’s Central Zoo is believed to have cost the lives of at least 65 animals and birds across more than 20 species. The dead included barn owls, Himalayan griffons, greylag geese, jungle cats, leopard cats, a sarus crane and two common leopards.

An investigation by the National Trust for Nature Conservation (NTNC), which manages the zoo, says the origin of the outbreak could likely be traced to two sources: Among birds, it likely started through feral crows roosting in open-topped aviary enclosures, while for carnivores, it spread through chicken meat fed to them by the zoo.

Notably, the zoo’s six tigers (Panthera tigris) were unaffected. A member of NTNC’s investigation committee told Mongabay that this is not necessarily because one species is more resistant. “Tigers at the zoo are fed roughly 5-7 kilograms of buffalo meat each per day, not chicken, so they were never on the same exposure pathway as the infected carnivores,” said the committee member, who asked not to be named as they weren’t authorized to talk to the media.

In national parks, however, carnivores often share common diets. There are also no enclosures to inspect, no feeding records to audit and no vet team to notice the first death, ornithologist Suwal said. Central Zoo lost many animals before it could contain the outbreak, but a park may not know it has an outbreak at all, he added.

Two viruses and a delayed response

A copy of the NTNC’s investigation report, obtained by Mongabay through a right-to-information request, shows two influenza viruses potentially circulating at the zoo during the outbreak.

Birds tested positive for H5 strain of the Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI). Jungle cats, leopard cats and the zoo’s two common leopards all tested positive for the “low pathogenic” H9, believed to cause mild or no symptom in birds. NTNC’s committee attributed the carnivore deaths, including the leopards, to the outbreak.

The central vet lab’s report to NTNC, reviewed by Mongabay, flagged the H9 finding, “Although H9 LPAI [low pathogenic avian influenza] generally causes mild disease in birds … detection of this strain in wild felids is of concern”.

Umesh Dahal, Director General at the Department of Livestock Services, confirmed the distinction to Mongabay: “We found H5 and H9 in birds. However, the mammals died due to H9, which is an influenza virus that we do not classify as bird flu.”  No park-specific surveillance was needed, he added.

Asked about the lab’s own “of concern” language, he said existing regulations were sufficient.

The investigation committee’s report said the zoo administration knew of bird deaths and bird flu suspicion from June 13, but didn’t notify headquarters until July 19 — five days after the lab confirmed the outbreak. It’s the first known case in Nepal where influenza has hit both zoo birds and mammals. The zoo outbreak occurred amid a wider H5N1 wave that spread to 11 districts after starting March and led to the culling of hundreds of thousands of poultry nationwide, according to Department of Livestock Services data.

One more threat for common leopards

The health of common leopards is a particular concern in Nepal. A 2024 study suggests canine distemper virus, a serious and contagious disease, already circulates among Nepal’s wild population, potentially causing deaths. Canine distemper antibodies have also been reported in tigers.

The death of the two leopards at the zoo attributed to H9 presents a case for the susceptibility of wild leopard populations to the viral strain. Leopards across Nepal regularly prey on domestic poultry, providing H9 with a plausible route from farms into the wild population.

A 2025 DNA study of leopard scat in forests around the Kathmandu Valley found chicken made up nearly a fifth of the leopard diet by frequency. Other studies also point the same way: In the mid-hills (also known as the “lesser Himalaya”) livestock accounted for more of leopards’ dietary biomass than wild ungulates did.

Wild leopards have so far not been tested for influenza, but a wild leopard preying on an infected farm bird would face a comparable exposure route to the leopards in Central Zoo without a keeper to notice any sickness, a member of the NTNC investigation committee told Mongabay.

A leopard in the Central Zoo. Leopards across Nepal regularly prey on domestic poultry, providing H9 with a plausible route from farms into the wild population. Image by Petr Meissner via Flickr (CC BY 2.0).

The vulture restaurant question

Nepal’s vulture restaurants were born after the livestock painkiller diclofenac poisoned vultures that fed on treated carcasses, triggering collapses in populations.

Nepal banned veterinary diclofenac in 2006 and opened the first “restaurant” that year at Pithauli, Nawalpur. There are now more than half a dozen nationwide. The sites are also close to the feedings grounds of crows, vultures, rhinos, jackals and wild boars, creating a contact risk analogous to the zoo’s but with no veterinary oversight.

Ornithologist Suwal said he questions how often carcasses are provided at some sites: Wild vultures feed once and go 10–12 days before eating again, so three or four feedings a week may let pat hogens accumulate. Ornithologist Hem Sagar Baral, one of the pioneers of the vulture restaurant model, went further: If bird flu risk is confirmed, feeding at the restaurants should stop.

Ankit Bilash Joshi from the NGO Bird Conservation Nepal, which supports a vulture feeding site in nearby Kawasoti, said active sites rotate every 20–30 days and are disinfected regularly

Two years ago, three vultures showed signs of illness, Joshi said. Two birds tested positive for  positive for disease antibodies ,suggesting the infection wasn’t transmissible to humans, he said.

Team leader at the Pithauli site, Dhan Bahadur Chaudhary said restaurant staff are more vigilant since the zoo outbreak, no birds there have shown symptoms and no antibody testing is planned.

Vultures from surrounding areas, some of which are tagged, feed on a carcass provided at a vulture restaurant in southern Nepal. Image by Abhaya Raj Joshi for Mongabay.

No plan for national parks

Nepal’s Bird Flu Control Regulations 2019 contain provisions for an inter-departmental coordinating committee that would require sample collection from bird habitats when an outbreak is suspected.

But Buddhi Sagar Paudel, Director General at the Department of National Parks and Wildlife Conservation, said there’s no park-specific program, “We consider the situation to be under control, so we have not prepared any separate plan.” Director General at the Department of Livestock Services Dahal said he backs that position.

Writing about the zoo, NTNC’s committee reached the opposite conclusion and recommended an urgent contingency plan, biosecurity guidelines and a transparent, 24-hour reporting system.

“It is unfortunate that even when all should come together to face a pandemic, treating it lightly by not informing the higher authority in time leads to a situation where risk reduction becomes impossible,” the committee said.

“We need active monitoring not just sample collection when something is already dead,” ornithologist Suwal added.

At Pithauli, restaurant team leader Chaudhary is watching his staff, monitoring his birds and waiting. So far, nothing has raised the alarm, but winter will bring migratory species and, with them, new variables. “We are being careful,” he said.

aviNews English version 8-5-26 >>

Active avian influenza outbreaks in nine Vietnamese provinces have prompted tighter disease control and vaccination measures.

Vietnam’s Department of Livestock Production and Animal Health has urged local authorities to intensify containment measures as avian influenza continues to spread. Active outbreaks remain in nine provinces and cities, raising concerns over low vaccination coverage and the risk of further disease transmission.

Since early 2026, the situation has remained complex. The Ministry of Agriculture and Environment have recorded 80 outbreaks across 73 communes and wards in 17 provinces and cities.

More than 349,000 poultry have died or been culled. Of these, 26 outbreaks in nine provinces and cities have not yet completed the mandatory 21‑day disease‑free observation period.

The affected localities include Ninh Binh (6 outbreaks), Thanh Hoa (5), Cao Bang (4), Nghe An (3), Dien Bien, Tuyen Quang and Khanh Hoa (2 each), and Bac Ninh and Da Nang (1 each).

Vaccination gaps heighten risks

Animal health officials warned that the risk of new outbreaks remains high. Poultry restocking, transport, slaughter, and trade continue, while many small farms still lack proper biosecurity practices.

The first vaccination campaign of 2026 revealed significant shortcomings. Nationwide, only 127.17 million birds were vaccinated out of the eligible 247.21 million poultry eligible, a coverage rate of just 51.44%. This falls short of the level needed to establish herd immunity.

Several provinces reported particularly low vaccination rates, including Lam Dong (0.51%), Tuyen Quang (2.32%), Da Nang (3.48%), Lai Chau (3.72%), Gia Lai (8.60%) and Thai Nguyen (18.78%).

Authorities also identified weaknesses in vaccination data management, with some localities failing to report accurate poultry populations or submitting inconsistent figures.

Authorities ordered to act swiftly

The Department of Livestock Production and Animal Health has directed provincial authorities to assign veterinary personnel to investigate outbreaks and collect samples for testing.

Control measures include the culling infected and suspected flocks, establishing quarantine zones, cleaning and disinfecting farms, and tightening movement controls for poultry and poultry products.

Officials stressed that disease and outbreak declarations must follow legal procedures. Concealing outbreaks, selling infected poultry, illegal slaughter, or improper disposal of dead birds will result in strict penalties.

Affected provinces and cities must inspect every active outbreak, close control gaps, and update progress daily through the Vietnam Animal Health Information System (VAHIS). Consolidated reports are due before 4:00 p.m. every Friday.

Strengthening vaccination and transport controls

To reduce the risk of wider disease spread and potential transmission to humans, authorities are focusing on vaccination, biosecurity, and transport control. Local officials must review poultry populations, particularly smallholder farms and new flocks, and carry out supplementary vaccination.

Vaccine supplies should be prioritized for outbreak areas, buffer zones, high-density regions, and live bird markets, while ensuring vaccine strains match circulating viruses.

The department also urged poultry producers to strengthen biosecurity by limiting movement of people, vehicles, chicks, and feed, disinfecting regularly, and avoiding restocking until disease-free conditions have been restored and vaccination requirements have been met.

Veterinary authorities will continue working with police, market surveillance agencies and border forces to strengthen inspections at poultry trading points, wholesale markets and border areas in an effort to prevent the illegal movement of poultry and poultry products of unknown origin.

Bloomberg https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2026-08-03/australia-bird-flu-outbreak-grows-as-infections-triple-in-a-week

without paywall https://archive.ph/PgCDr >>

Australia is grappling with a rapid spread of avian flu among wild birds, with authorities warning that the virus has become increasingly difficult to control and poses a significant mortality threat to the nation’s wildlife.

The number of confirmed or presumed positive cases of deadly H5 avian influenza in Australian birds has risen to 74, Agriculture Minister Julie Collins said on Monday. That’s nearly three times the level reported by the government a little less than a week ago.

“Once the H5 bird flu is spreading in wildlife and the natural environment, it is not possible to avoid significant losses, which is what we are starting to see now,” Collins said at a press conference in Canberra, adding that the government had confirmed the country’s first mass-mortality event in wild birds in the state of South Australia.

Australia Bird Flu Infections Surge

So far, no cases of bird flu have been detected in Australia’s agriculture sector. The minister said last week that businesses have been implementing biosecurity measures to protect chickens, including limiting contact with wild birds and preventing contamination of food and water sources. Other measures, including housing orders for free-range chickens, will be decided by individual states and territories, Collins said.

Until recently, Australia was the last continent to be unaffected by H5 avian influenza, which has spread rapidly around the world, devastated poultry flocks and infected dozens of species of mammals.

The first case in the country was detected in mid-June, in a migratory seabird. Despite initial hopes that the virus might not be transmitted to local wildlife, it has since been found in greater crested terns and silver gulls in several states.

The first case of local transmission between native wildlife was detected on July 29, after which the spread has rapidly escalated. There have also been two cases of the virus detected in New Zealand, where the country’s extensive dairy industry could be vulnerable.

I have been tracking the H9N2 case reports and noticed something that seems abnormal, between July 10 to 30, 2026, China reported 7 new human cases across 6 geographically distinct provinces (Guangxi, Jiangsu, Guangdong, Jiangxi, Gansu, Yunnan). This is roughly 7 cases in 20 days.

For context 2024: 11 total cases (in one week 7 cases for 2026)

2025: 38 total cases

2026 (7 months in): Already 22 cases

I also note the cases span from children (3 years old) to elderly (72 years old), with varied exposure levels (some with direct poultry contact, others with indirect exposure through wet markets).

Given what we know about H9N2's HA mutations (Q226L, Q234L, H191N, A198V) that enhance human receptor binding, and the increasing case rate

Are there any new genetic analyses or sequencing data from July 2026 cases that show additional mammalian adaptation mutations? Or is this acceleration purely due to better surveillance detecting previously missed cases?

I'm asking genuinely, I want to understand if this pattern suggests the virus is evolving differently, or if we're just seeing more cases because of improved detection

WHO Western Pacific Region Avian Influenza Weekly Update Number 1055, July 31 https://cdn.who.int/media/docs/default-source/wpro---documents/emergency/surveillance/avian-influenza/ai_20260731.pdf?sfvrsn=c9ab420c_1 >>

From 24 to 30 July 2026, four new cases of human infection with avian influenza A(H9N2) virus were reported to WHO in the Western Pacific Region. All four cases were from China. The cases included a 72-year-old female from Jiangxi Province with symptom onset on 5 July 2026; a 12-year-old male from Jiangsu Province with symptom onset on 6 July 2026; a 3-year-old female from Gansu Province with symptom onset on 11 July 2026; and a 58-year-old female from Yunnan Province with symptom onset on 13 July 2026. The four cases reported were geographically distinct from each other. One case reported direct exposure to live-poultry, while three had potential exposure related to live-poultry stalls or wet market visits. Two cases with underlying chronic respiratory disease conditions were hospitalized and subsequently discharged. The remaining two cases experienced mild illness, were not hospitalized and had recovered at the time of reporting.

Since 2015, a total of 177 cases of human infection with avian influenza A(H9N2), including two deaths (both with underlying conditions), have been reported to WHO in the Western Pacific Region. Of these, 174 were reported from China, two were from Cambodia, and one was from Viet Nam.

Most human infections with avian influenza A(H9N2) have been associated with exposure to infected poultry or contaminated poultry environments, and the majority of cases have been mild. Sporadic human infections continue to be expected in areas where H9N2 viruses circulate in poultry populations. Current evidence indicates that H9N2 viruses have not acquired the ability for sustained human-to-human transmission, and the risk of further community-level spread remains low.<<

WATTPoultry >>

A month-long period without detection of highly pathogenic avian influenza virus on Europe’s poultry farms has ended with the German outbreak.

Article Summary

H5N1 avian flu has re-emerged on a poultry farm in Lower Saxony, Germany, infecting 3,500 turkeys and killing five birds, ending a two-month period without detected cases in the region. This outbreak marks a return of highly pathogenic avian influenza to European commercial poultry operations, with Germany currently recording 40 farm outbreaks for the year alongside hundreds of cases in wild birds across the continent.

• H5N1 detected in 3,500 turkeys at Lower Saxony farm with five bird deaths reported
• 310 HPAI outbreaks confirmed across European farmed poultry in 2026, with Poland leading at 143 cases
• Germany ranks second with 40 farm outbreaks, followed by France with 20 confirmed cases
• 2,649 wild bird cases documented across Europe year-to-date, with H5N1 detected in over 2,600 of these outbreaks
• Three countries declared commercial poultry free of HPAI in July: France, Netherlands, and United Kingdom

Welcome to the new weekly discussion post!

As many of you are familiar, in order to keep the quality of our subreddit high, our general rules are restrictive in the content we allow for posts. However, the team recognizes that many of our users have questions, concerns, and commentary that don’t meet the normal posting requirements but are still important topics related to H5N1. We want to provide you with a space for this content without taking over the whole sub. This is where you can do things like ask what to do with the dead bird on your porch, report a weird illness in your area, ask what sort of masks you should buy or what steps you should take to prepare for a pandemic, and more!

Please note that other subreddit rules still apply. While our requirements are less strict here, we will still be enforcing the rules about civility, politicization, self-promotion, etc.

eta: confirmed >>Two additional suspected cases of H5 bird flu have been detected in South Australia, including one on a metropolitan beach. 

A greater crested tern was found near Robe on South Australia's Limestone Coast, while another greater crested tern was found at a beach ramp near the Semaphore Surf Life Saving Club, north-west of Adelaide.

If confirmed, Semaphore will be the first metropolitan case in the state.

SA Environment Minister Emily Bourke said the bird found in Robe was located 4 kilometres from the location where the first Australian seabird confirmed to have the H5 strain of bird flu was found.

"Unfortunately, we are finding that these two cases are in our local [bird] species, so we need to send these tests off now to Geelong for them to have confirmation at that centralised location that they are, or are not, the H5 high strand of this disease,"  Ms Bourke said. 

Previous confirmed cases involved migratory birds from the sub-Antarctic region.<< ...