Global Bird Flu Outbreak: South America a Viable Track of Avian Influenza Virus Towards Antarctica [Update]

Bird flu has continued to be a global outbreak as of January 2024, with continued infections in multiple countries ranging from the United States and the United Kingdom to France and Japan. The latest avian influenza outbreak in recent years centered across the northern hemisphere. However, 2023 saw the increased presence of the virus in some parts of the southern hemisphere.

In October last year, the first case of the bird-borne disease was detected in the Antarctic region, particularly among the brown skua population on Bird Island off South Georgia. It was followed by mass elephant seal deaths across the region. Before the bird flu virus reached the icy continent, it killed 20,000 sea lions in South America, especially in Chile and Peru.

The southward directional pattern of the avian flu indicates that South America is a viable track or a potential pathway towards Antarctica. The widespread infections are made possible as the bird flu virus also mutated to infect mammals, in addition to only avians as its main hosts. The latest developments surrounding the outbreak shows that even remote parts of the world is susceptible to pathogens.

Global Bird Flu Outbreak

As far as records show, the avian influenza virus is a decades-old pathogen that causes health complications and even death to infected birds and other mammals.

Humans are also vulnerable to a bird flu infection, with the World Health Organization (WHO) reported that 880 cases of humans tested positive with avian influenza A (H5N1) in 23 countries globally from January 2003 to November 2023. Among this figure, 460 cases were fatal, according to the WHO's reported in December 2023.

What makes the current global bird flu outbreak concerning is its transmission from avians to mammals. In the past, infections sometimes include but are not limited to wild animals like bears, seals, foxes, skunks, and farmed mink, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

Some stray or domestic animals, including cats and dogs, and zoo animals, such as tigers and leopards, were also infected by bird flu viruses before, the CDC adds.

South America Bird Flu

The South America bird flu shows the devastating impact of the bird flu outbreak to wildlife across the region, leading to a growing risk that Antarctica could be next.

According to a report earlier this week, a network of avian influenza, called OFFLU, stated that the avian influenza flu led to the deaths of more than 500,000 birds and 50,000 mammals since the disease was detected in South America. Among the dead animals include 262,000 cormorants, 62,000 Peruvian pelicans, 32,000 sea lions, and 4,000 Humboldt penguins.

Due to the growing threat, experts associated with the Australian Antarctic Program have travelled to Antarctica and the sub-Antarctic this summer, the report adds. The program's objective is to monitor wildlife and detect potential signs of the bird flu disease, which is caused by a virus belonging to the family Orthomyxoviridae.