Two dolphins die from Bird Flu in British waters: Government announces death of sea mammals due to highly contagious H5N1 after they were found in two separate locations
Two dolphins have died from bird flu for the first time in the UK, and were both infected with the highly contagious H5N1 virus, the government has announced.
The ocean mammals were found in separate spots, on beaches in Devon and in Pembrokeshire, last month.
A harbour porpoise was also found to have died from the variant of avian influenza in East Yorkshire.
Highly pathogenic, H5N1 has spread around the globe over the past 18 months, causing the deaths of millions of birds.
Bird flu has been seen in dolphins elsewhere worldwide but never before in the species British waters.
Two dolphins have died from bird flu for the first time in the UK, and were both infected with the highly pathogenic H5N1 virus, the government has announced (file image)
It has, however, previously been seen in native species including foxes, otters and grey seals.
The bird flu outbreak, which began early last year, is the biggest in history, and has affected more than 200 million domestic birds globally, as well as wild birds.
As well as birds, the virus has infected a range of mammals, including 23 in the UK, causing serious concern among scientists.
Worldwide, it has spilled into mammals like mink, racoons and bears, sparking fears it may soon acquire worrying new mutations that would allow it to cause a human pandemic.
Scientists have not so far been able to confirm that the virus can spread between mammals in the wild.
Most wildlife who contract avian flu are believed to have caught it from scavenging infected birds.
However, the mass deaths of seals and sea lions from the virus have been a major cause for concern, with the World Organisation for Animal Health looking into the findings.
H5N1 is not yet capable of spreading between people, like Covid and other flu viruses.
While it is poorly adapted for humans, the virus is deadly, in that it kills about half of those it infects.
Tens of thousands of birds suddenly die in coastal Peru and throughout the Americas. Municipal workers collect dead pelicans on Santa Maria beach in Lima, Peru, Tuesday, Nov. 30, 2022
In late February, a Cambodian schoolgirl became 2023’s first bird flu victim after she and her father became infected.
Eleven-year-old Bean Narong died on February 22 after catching Type A HN51 in the impoverished Rolaing Village in the southeastern province of Prey Veng.
The World Health Organisation (WHO) said at the time that the situation was ‘worrying’ but stressed there was currently no evidence bird flu had made the genetic leap necessary to spread between humans.
The little girl and her father were among fewer than 1,000 people ever to have been diagnosed with H5N1.
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