Published: Jun 20, 2026, 07:42 IST | Updated: Jun 20, 2026, 07:42 IST
A catastrophic wildlife die-off has been confirmed on the remote Australian sub-Antarctic territories of Heard and McDonald Islands. New research indicates that the highly pathogenic H5N1 strain of bird flu has decimated local populations, resulting in the deaths of over 13,000 southern elephant seal pups—an estimated 76% of the island’s annual population.