H5N1 Suspected in 1,000 South Australia Tern Deaths as 28 Penguins Die on King Island
Updated
Updated · ABC News · Aug 21
H5N1 Suspected in 1,000 South Australia Tern Deaths as 28 Penguins Die on King Island
3 articles · Updated · ABC News · Aug 21
Summary
More than 1,000 crested terns were found dead in three mass mortality events on remote South Australian islands, with Premier Peter Malinauskas saying they are presumed to have died from H5N1.
South Australia has now recorded 177 confirmed H5 bird flu cases, including seven new detections in terns, a silver gull and an Australian raven, while a little penguin from Kangaroo Island is also being tested.
On Tasmania's King Island, surveillance teams found 28 dead penguins and three dead crested terns, with lab results pending after H5 was first detected in the state last week.
Authorities in both states are expanding aerial and ground surveillance, and South Australia is weighing targeted vaccination for captive birds such as penguins at Adelaide Zoo and Cleland Wildlife Park.
Scientists and wildlife officials say the deaths mark a major escalation for Australian wildlife and warn Bass Strait could become a focal area for further spread across seabird species.
In August 2026, the highly contagious H5N1 bird flu virus, introduced to Australia by migratory wild birds from the Southern Ocean, quickly spread to all six states and began circulating within local bird populations. Mass deaths were first seen among greater crested terns in South Australia, with the virus soon reaching Tasmania and causing further wildlife losses. Ground-nesting birds like terns and gulls, which nest closely together, proved especially vulnerable, while species such as little penguins benefited from natural social distancing in burrows. Australia's native species, lacking prior exposure to similar viruses, face a high risk of severe decline or extinction as the outbreak continues.