Seven new suspected bird flu cases have been detected in a native species, placing the poultry industry on high alert.
The greater crested terns found in South Australia have been sent for testing for confirmation amid fears of a local transmission.
The seven birds were found in SA’s southeast, including five at Southend.
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Of the five birds collected from Southend, four were sick and one was dead.
While Australia has 20 confirmed cases across SA, Western Australia, NSW and Queensland, only one has been discovered to date in an Australian native, non-migratory bird species.
South Australia’s primary industries minister, Clare Scriven, said that while there had been no detections in poultry or the broader agricultural industry, the sector was on high alert.
“There is a very high possibility that it will eventually get into poultry,” she told reporters in Adelaide.
“What we have been focused on with industry is that they will be as prepared as possible.”
Federal Agriculture Minister Julie Collins said at this stage there had been no mass mortalities and the risk to human health remained low.
“The states and territories have been doing an enormous amount of triaging and testing right across the country and we have obviously had these detections all along the coast at this point in time.”
Greater crested terns are a common and widely distributed species on the Australian coastline.
They are approaching the breeding season, which increases the risk of transmission as the birds gather in close-knit colonies of thousands.
“We need to focus on the surveillance and monitor what’s happening in those populations,” SA chief veterinary officer Skye Fruean told reporters in Adelaide on Monday.
“Until we get to the point of it being confirmed that we have local birds spreading it between each other, the situation doesn’t change.”
She said it was impossible to stop the spread of the disease within wild birds, with containing it the only option.
