Avian influenza has reached Antarctica

Avian influenza has been found in Antarctic and sub-Antarctic birds. Image from Unsplash.

After making it's way down the coast of South America in 2022, avian influenza finally reached the Antarctic mainland in January 2024 when it was detected in two dead South Polar skua birds near Argentina's Antarctic research base.

This marks a grim milestone in the ongoing global outbreak of avian influenza that has been growing and spreading since 2003. How will the virus affect Antarctica's unique animal populations and biodiversity?

We know that the H5 2.3.4.4b type of avian influenza, the dominant type since 2021 around the globe, can infect not only wild birds but also wild mammals across a broad range of species. This includes seals, sea lions, and dolphins, with catastrophic mortalities seen in some species. South American sea lions in coastal Peru died in their thousands over a few months in early 2023, with some estimates that at least 5% of the population were killed by the virus. The news was far worse for southern elephant seals in Argentina in December 2023, where an estimated 95% of all seal pups died.

Mortality events of this scale can have serious impacts on biodiversity and even threaten species survival. But monitoring of Antarctica's remote wildlife populations is difficult, as researchers can't visit all year round due to the extreme weather conditions. Tracking the disease spread will be challenging. Despite this, efforts such as camera tracking will help monitor some populations, while scientists and tourists can take steps to ensure they are not bringing the virus with them when they visit the Antarctic and sub-Antarctic.

As Antarctic birds and mammals leave on their seasonal migrations, they may carry the virus to new places, and there may be more outbreaks to come as it encounters new populations of vulnerable animals.

Keep up with the latest news on avian influenza at the World Organisation for Animal Health, and see our list of resources for more places to get information about zoonotic diseases like avian influenza.