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Bird flu is killing tens of thousands of seals and sea lions around the world, disrupting ecosystems and baffling scientists who see no clear way to slow this devastating virus.
The worldwide bird flu outbreak, which began in 2020, has killed millions of poultry birds and spread to wildlife around the world.
This virus is not believed to pose a significant threat to humans, but its spread into agricultural operations and wild ecosystems has caused widespread economic and environmental disruption.
Scientists said seals and sea lions, which live as far apart as Maine and Chile, appear to be particularly vulnerable to the disease.
The virus was discovered in seals on the east and west coasts of the United States, leading to the death of more than 300 seals in the New England region.
The situation is more serious in South America, where more than 20,000 sea lions have died in Chile and Peru, and thousands of elephant seals have died in Argentina.
The virus can be controlled in pets, but it can spread unchecked in wildlife and marine mammals such as seals in South America that have not been exposed to it, said Marcella O’Hart, director of the Latin America program at the Karen C. Dreyer Center for Wildlife Health at the University of California, Davis. It has already suffered devastating consequences.
O’Hart added: “Once the virus enters wildlife, it spreads like wildfire, as long as there are susceptible animals and species. The movement of animals spreads the virus to new areas.”