July 15 (Reuters) – New Zealand reported its first case of the deadly H5N1 bird flu after a migratory seabird found on a beach near the capital, Wellington, tested positive, Biosecurity Minister Andrew Hoggard said on Wednesday.
The case in a brown skua seabird comes after the virus was detected last month in Australia, the last continent to report the virus. The virulent H5 strain has spread through wild bird and mammal populations since 2021, killing millions and infecting poultry and dairy farms as well as some farmworkers.
“There is no evidence of any mass mortality in wildlife or transmission between wild birds in New Zealand. There has been no detection in poultry,” Hoggard said in a statement.
New Zealand has been preparing for the arrival of H5N1, working with the poultry industry to develop biosecurity and resilience plans.
Hoggard said New Zealand may see a similar pattern to cases reported in neighbouring Australia, where there have been 14 confirmed or presumed positive detections of H5 bird flu as of Wednesday.
Health officials have started a vaccination programme for 300 core breeding birds from five of the country’s most endangered species, Hoggard said.
H5 was confirmed on Heard Island, a sub-Antarctic Australian territory, in late 2025.
(Reporting by Renju Jose in Sydney; Editing by Kate Mayberry and Sonali Paul)
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