Australia Launches World's 1st Campaign To Vaccinate Penguins Against Bird Flu - Reports

MOSCOW, Aug 24 (Bernama-Sputnik/RIA Novosti) -- The world's first mass vaccination of penguins against bird flu is underway in Australia, with around a thousand birds having already received the first dose, Sputnik/RIA Novosti reported on Monday, citing the ABC News.

It was the first time the team had attempted anything like this and, most importantly, the first mass vaccination programme of this scale in the world, Phillip Island Nature Parks chief executive officer Catherine Basterfield said.

"Our team took some time earlier in the week in testing, planning, and trialling different methods to roll out this vaccination programme," she said.

The vaccination programme started amid the spread of the H5N1 bird flu among Australian wildlife. The first case of infection in a mammal, a long-nosed fur seal, was confirmed in South Australia on Sunday. Another suspected case of bird flu was detected near the world's largest colony of endangered Australian sea lions.

Australian authorities have authorised the vaccination of up to 5,000 little penguins on Phillip Island and up to 800 birds in St. Kilda. Each penguin will receive two doses of the vaccine, approximately 21-28 days apart. During the vaccination, the birds are examined, weighed, and microchipped before being released.

Bird flu was detected in August on Phillip Island, home to the world's largest colony of 40,000 little penguins. Modelling conducted by experts showed that a major outbreak of the disease could lead to the death of between 8,000 and 16,000 birds on the island.

-- BERNAMA-SPUTNIK/RIA NOVOSTI