The world’s first case of bird flu in porpoises: Sweden
A porpoise found stranded on a Swedish beach in June died of bird flu, the first time the virus has been detected in a porpoise, Sweden’s State Veterinary Medical Institute said on Wednesday.
“As far as we know, this is the first confirmed case in the world of bird flu in a porpoise,” says veterinarian Elina Thorsson in a statement.
“It is likely that the porpoise somehow came into contact with infected birds,” she said.
The young male was found stranded, alive, on a beach in western Sweden at the end of June. Despite efforts by members of the public to get it to swim out to deeper water, it suffered from exhaustion and died that evening.
The bird flu virus, H5N1, was found in several of its organs.
“Unlike seals, where diseases caused by an influenza virus have been detected several times, there have only been a handful of reports of influenza viruses in cetaceans,” said Thorsson.
The virus has also previously been detected in other mammals, including red foxes, otters, lynxes and skunks, the institute said.
Europe and North America are currently seeing a major outbreak of bird flu among wild birds.
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© 2022 AFP
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