Report any unusual bird deaths immediately and call the Emergency Animal Disease Hotline on 1800 675 888.
Bird flu is a viral disease of birds and is found across the globe. Bird flu virus strains are described as low pathogenicity avian influenza (LPAI) or high pathogenicity avian influenza (HPAI).
Most LPAI strains of the bird flu virus cause minimal disease in wild birds and poultry. However, some LPAI strains can evolve into HPAI strains when they spread among poultry.
The H5N1 strain of bird flu is spreading globally, causing widescale death of poultry and wild birds.
Latest on bird flu
Supporting Australia’s bird flu preparedness and response
In recognition of the H5 bird flu threat, the Australian Government is investing more than $100 million into enhancing national preparedness and response capability.
This funding will strengthen surveillance, preparedness and response capability and mitigate the impacts of a potential H5 bird flu outbreak on Australian agriculture, environment and human health.
Through this significant investment, the Australian Government is committing:
- $37 million over 2 years to protect Australian agriculture by enhancing national coordination of response arrangement and communications, strengthening surveillance and boosting biosecurity capacity and capability across the production sector and environmental biosecurity.
- $35.9 million over 2 years to boost and accelerate H5 bird flu preparedness planning and protective action by using the best data available to target actions for our most at-risk species and important natural places.
- $22.1 million over 2 years to manufacture and store pandemic influenza vaccines that will better prepare the Australian Government to respond quickly to a potential influenza pandemic.
Read the Australian Government’s media release and download the factsheet:
Download
Fact sheet: Supporting Australia’s Avian Influenza Preparedness and Response (PDF 245 KB)
Fact sheet: Supporting Australia’s Avian Influenza Preparedness and Response (DOCX 126 KB)
If you have difficulty accessing these files, visit web accessibility for assistance.
Visit outbreak.gov.au for information about the H7 bird flu response
Overseas situation
A highly contagious strain of H5 bird flu is spreading across the globe, causing widescale outbreaks. These have caused extensive losses of poultry and wild birds, and spillover infections in mammals. Occasional infections have been detected in humans. Many have been mild or asymptomatic, but some infections in humans have caused severe illness. This strain has not been detected in Australia, but there are concerns about the potential impacts on poultry and wildlife if it arrives on our shores.
