In response to the threat of a deadly bird flu strain that has been identified in Australia, the government has allocated A$95 million to fight the disease.
This comes as millions of migratory birds begin to arrive in the country, which could expose the region to the H5N1 virus.
The HPAI H5N1 strain has been detected in various animals and poultry across the globe, including humans.
Despite the situation in Australia, the minister for environment warned that the disease will still continue to spread globally.
The HPAI H5N1 strain is considered to be the worst case that Australia has seen. The government has allocated additional funds to help the country prepare for the situation.
Although the virus can infect birds, it can also infect other animals. There are various strains of the avian flu virus in Australia that are not considered to be harmful to humans.
Although the H5N1 and H7 viruses can be found in wild birds in Australia, they are the strains that cause the most concern.
These illnesses have significant implications for domestic and wild birds, as well as workers and animal producers. The first case of the HPAI H5N1 strain was detected in Asia in 1996.
The virus repeatedly entered wild birds from 2014 to 2020, causing an animal pandemic or panzootic event. The pandemic started in 2021.
It then spread to North America, Europe, and South America in 2022. In South America, the virus killed almost 500,000 wild birds and thousands of marine mammals.
Although the disease had been affecting wild birds all across the globe, the outbreaks in South America were unprecedented.
It was also worrying to see that the virus was infecting other mammals instead of just birds.
After the virus was discovered in South America, it was detected in the Antarctic Peninsula and the sub-Antarctic region.
Fortunately, the virus has not affected New Zealand and Australia yet.