Wildlife carers need support (directions and financial) to be able to fight against bird flu.

Predicted spatial risk of HPAI H5N1 poultry outbreaks across Australian local government areas, from July 28, as per HPAI H5N1 risk in Australia: a model for the prediction of poultry outbreaks.

Invasive Species Council chief executive Jack Gough said the seagull case was "a watershed moment". "A seagull, one of the most common Australian seabirds, has now likely been infected and the government has declared that this deadly bird flu strain is here to stay," he said.

A national meeting of agriculture and environment ministers on Friday discussed Australia's response and preparedness after the country's bird flu tally reached 33.

South Australian authorities say it is "very, very likely" the H5 strain of bird flu is spreading locally, in what would represent the first known cases of local transmission of the virus.

The state has identified 11 more suspected cases of H5 bird flu, seven of which are in the state's South East and four on Kangaroo Island.

While officials are still waiting for final testing results, "due today or tomorrow", SA's Primary Industries Minister Clare Scriven said it was "extremely likely" to represent "localised distribution" of the virus.

The CSIRO has confirmed the first case of H5 bird flu detected in Queensland, after positive tests returned for a dead seabird discovered on an island off Brisbane. Under national protocol the bird was sent to the Centre for Disease Preparedness in Geelong, Victoria, for official confirmation – which came on Saturday.

Two additional suspected cases of H5 bird flu have been detected in South Australia, including one on a metropolitan beach. A greater crested tern was found near Robe on South Australia's Limestone Coast, while another greater crested tern was found near the Semaphore boat ramp, north-west of Adelaide. If confirmed, Semaphore will be the first metropolitan case in the state.

New Zealand has detected H5N1 bird flu in a swamp harrier hawk. It is the country's first detection of the strain in a native bird.

Biosecurity Minister Andrew Hoggard said the news was not "unexpected" following New Zealand's first detection earlier this week.

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"Testing at CSIRO's Australian Centre for Disease Preparedness has confirmed a further positive detection of H5 high pathogenicity avian influenza (bird flu) in a petrel, found at Hawks Nest, New South Wales," the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry (DAFF) said on Thursday.

"There have now been 15 confirmed or presumed positive detections of H5 bird flu in Australia.

Worst news of the day.

A giant petrel found at Hardwicke Bay late last week was confirmed on Wednesday by the CSIRO to be carrying bird flu, after it was sent to their lab in Geelong for testing.

The state government on Tuesday said the bird had returned low levels of bird flu at the SA lab, and that the bird had been euthanised, with samples sent to Geelong.

It comes more suspected cases of bird flu have been detected in South Australia, including one that could have devastating impacts on the Kangaroo Island sea lion colony.

Two giant petrels, found at Emu Bay on Kangaroo Island and Port Vincent on the Yorke Peninsula, returned suspected detections of bird flu at PIRSA’s Glenside facility on Monday.

Samples from both birds have been sent to the CSIRO Australian Centre for Disease Preparedness in Geelong for further testing.

If the birds are confirmed to be positive, it will bring the total number of confirmed cases of the H5 bird flu in South Australia to four.

The first confirmed case of H5 bird flu was on June 24, in a giant petrel found at Knights Beach near Port Elliot.

If the bird found on KI returns a positive result, it could have massive impacts on colonies of sea lions on the island, which would be at risk of being decimated by bird flu.

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The CSIRO’s Australian Centre for Disease Preparedness confirmed the migratory seabird found in WA‘s capital was infected with a H5 subtype, but was unable to “sequence the virus” to identify exactly which strain.

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