Second H5 Bird Flu Case Prompts Closure of Australia’s Largest Poultry Farm

22/06/2026

PERTH, Jun 22: A second sick bird found on a remote beach on Western Australia’s south coast has tested positive for the H5N1 strain of avian influenza, authorities have confirmed.

Federal Agriculture Minister Julie Collins said testing by the CSIRO confirmed that both a brown skua and a northern giant petrel found in Esperance , about 700 kilometres south-east of Perth, had tested positive for H5N1 bird flu.

Authorities confirmed on Saturday morning that the brown skua had the disease. The second positive result has heightened monitoring efforts in the region, which is a major migratory route and nesting ground for seabirds.

Collins said there was currently no evidence of mass wildlife deaths and that Australia’s poultry and agricultural systems remained free from bird flu.

“We are working to determine whether the H5 bird flu has established in the wildlife of Australia, other than these two isolated birds,” she said.

She said samples from the infected birds would be examined over the next week to determine whether there was evidence of the virus spreading to other species.