Birds washing up along Australia’s east coast spark avian flu concerns

Beachgoers from North Queensland to Tasmania have collectively reported thousands of washed up migratory* seabirds in recent months, raising fresh concerns about bird flu* finding its way into Australia.

At popular Queensland holiday destination North Stradbroke Island, about 100 dead birds have been found over the past week, according to residents.

Scientists referred to the phenomenon of masses of dead and dying migratory shearwater mutton-birds* washed up on the beach as “a seabird wreck”.

Annually from October to November, migrating short-tailed shearwaters travel to their breeding sites along the Australian east coast from as far away as South America, Siberia and Japan.

In a statement, the Queensland government’s Environment Department said it believed the main cause of avian* death on Stradbroke was not a strain of bird flu but malnutrition*.

“The main cause of the bird deaths is malnutrition from them not eating enough food prior to their migration to Australia,” the statement read.

Biosecurity Queensland did not comment on the dead birds, which have not been confined to Queensland shores.

Wildlife rescuers in New South Wales have already urged the NSW government to increase measures to prevent the potential spread of deadly bird flu strain H5N1, which has not reached Australia to date.

Marine experts predicted the virus could arrive with this year’s spring migration of seabirds.

The matter is so serious that last month, the federal government set up a $95 million fund to help the nation prepare for such an emergency.

University of Tasmania marine scientist Dr Lauren Roman, who specialises in marine debris*,

did not rule out avian flu, urging beachgoers not to touch the birds but to immediately report “unusual bird deaths this summer”.

“The birds are in starving condition but we can’t really say that starvation is the cause of death without eliminating* other causes,” Dr Roman said.

“The deadly bird disease has a probability of reaching Australia’s shores this summer.

“HPAI* has killed millions of birds worldwide, including seabirds.

“The disease could enter Australia if carried by birds, including mutton-birds, migrating from the Northern Hemisphere, where HPAI is infecting wild bird populations.

“Queensland authorities are on alert for any mass mortality* of birds at the moment, especially migratory birds.

“However, mortalities of migrating shearwaters commonly occur this time of year so people should be alert but not alarmed.”

Birdlife Australia chief executive Kate Millar said last week that Australia was not sufficiently prepared for the H5N1 virus, a specific subtype of the influenza A virus.

She said the H5N1 was the deadliest strain of bird flu and believed to be responsible for widespread wild bird fatalities* across the globe.

The thousands of birds washed up on east coast beaches prompted Australian research organisation Adrift Lab to start building a data bank.

So far, the group has reported tens of thousands of birds have died on the 2000km stretch of east coast beaches in the past months.

Adrift Lab reiterated that people should not to touch the animals.

WHAT YOUR COMMUNITY CAN DO IF BIRDS WASH ASHORE

– Take a photo of the scene and each individual bird (photo should include the beak and feet)

– If you don’t have a phone or camera with you, report the sighting anyway – Adrift Lab won’t be able to confirm the bird species but they can still record your observations

– Estimate how far you walked and the distance between each bird

– estimate how populated the area was at the time

– Include the total number of dead/dying birds you observed

– Have an adult (aged 18 and over) email the images and information to adriftlab@gmail.com

POLL

GLOSSARY

• migratory: describes a bird or animal that travels to a different place usually when seasons change
• bird flu: avian flu, high pathogenicity avian influenza (HPAI), is a highly contagious viral disease that affects both domestic and wild birds, but wild birds are capable of spreading it across large distances during migratory movements
• shearwater mutton-birds: named for their ability to cut – or shear – the water with their wings, these oceanic birds travel around the world each year to hatch and raise a single chick in colonies in southern Australia
• avian: relating to birds
• malnutrition: not getting or absorbing enough nutrients into the body to maintain good health
• debris: rubbish, litter, garbage
• eliminating: getting rid of something completely
• HPAI: stands for “high pathogenicity avian influenza”, commonly known as bird flu
• mortality: death
• fatalities: deaths

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QUICK QUIZ

1. Residents of which Queensland island reported around 100 birds washed ashore this past week?
2. Which migratory bird species has been identified?
3. What likely cause of death did QLD’s Environment Department provide in a statement?
4. What is the particular bird flu strain authorities are trying to keep out of Australia?
5. The federal government set up a $95 million fund for what specific purpose?

LISTEN TO THIS STORY

CLASSROOM ACTIVITIES
1. What would you do?
How would you investigate why the mutton-birds died? Write a step-by-step plan that would rely on scientific methods to find the answer. Include steps that would help to rule out any other possible causes.

Time: allow at least 40 minutes to complete this activity
Curriculum Links: English, Science

2. Extension
Do you know how birds know where they are going when they are migrating? Brainstorm some ideas, write them down. Use your research skills to see if you were correct, or if your theories are close to what scientists think.

Time: allow at least 30 minutes to complete this activity
Curriculum Links: English, Science

VCOP ACTIVITY
Creative vocabulary
Find a bland sentence from the article to up-level. Can you add more detail and description? Can you replace any ‘said’ words with more specific synonyms?

Have you outdone yourself and used some really great vocabulary throughout your writing? Firstly, well done. Secondly, let’s ensure everyone can understand it by adding a glossary of terms. Pick three of your wow words and create a glossary for each word to explain what it means.