Two dead birds on Eyre Peninsula prompt H5 bird flu testing

Two dead birds found at Fowlers Bay on South Australia’s Eyre Peninsula have been sent for urgent H5 bird flu testing, with authorities moving quickly after Australia’s first mainland H5N1 detections in Western Australia.

Reporting from South Australia said the birds, believed to be a prion and a southern fulmar, were reported by local tour operator Rod Keogh and collected for sampling. PIRSA has said any samples that initially indicate H5 bird flu are forwarded to the CSIRO for confirmatory testing.

South Australia does not have a confirmed H5 bird flu case at this stage. Officials are monitoring multiple high-risk areas and conservation sites, and the public has been told not to touch sick or dead birds and to report any sightings.

Why the Fowlers Bay report matters

Fowlers Bay sits on South Australia’s far west coast, close to the Western Australian border, making any suspected detection there a significant development in the broader monitoring response.

The discovery comes days after Western Australia confirmed H5N1 in two wild seabirds near Esperance: a brown skua and a giant petrel. Those detections triggered biosecurity responses on poultry farms and added to concern about possible spread into other wildlife populations.

Authorities are particularly watching for spillover into native wildlife, including marine mammals such as Australian sea lions, as well as any risk to poultry and other livestock.

What happens next

The immediate question is whether the Fowlers Bay samples confirm H5N1 or rule it out. PIRSA and CSIRO results are still pending.

Officials are also watching for any further reports of sick or dead birds along South Australia’s west and far west coasts. If the results are positive, the state could expand surveillance further.

For now, the South Australian government says there is no confirmed H5 bird flu in the state, but it is treating the Eyre Peninsula reports as a high-priority testing event tied to the mainland outbreak now emerging in Western Australia.